Remember to Forget Me
by Brine224
Summary: House is out to annoy Cuddy in a twisted attempt to win her over. But she has a surpise for him.
1. Chapter 1

THE GIFT OF TODAY…IS THAT IT'S OVER

Disclaimer: I have no rights and no money.

Summary: Not good with them….read and review if you like it

**Chapter 1**

A thick fog hung low over the Princeton-Plainsboro University Teaching Hospital as the warm ground air circulated with the cooling atmosphere of the New Jersey fall. The hallways were a bustle of activity as doctors and nurses rushed to meet the needs of all the patients of the hospital and the adjoining clinic.

There was one doctor however, who took his time maneuvering the wide corridors, not feeling the urgency of his colleagues. House's pronounced limp went virtually unnoticed by everyone in the building save one very determined Dean of Medicine.

"Dr. House!" She called to him as he hobbled toward her.

Instead of answering House took a sharp turn and walked in the other direction as quickly as his one good leg would take him. He could here the click of Dr. Cuddy's heels gaining on him and with no where to go he stopped suddenly. Not being prepared for him to stop, Cuddy almost barreled right into his back

"I didn't realize administration had become a contract sport. Or is that just a game you like to play with me?" He spun around and leaned into her personal space.

Cuddy opened her mouth to respond but thought better of it, deciding to simply roll her eyes at the overgrown child the doctor before her was. "I was supposed to have the Karen Collins file on my desk first thing this morning. It's now noon." She looked carefully at him, noting his jacket and bag also the direction he had come from. "Did you just get into work?

"Some jobs require creative accounting, mine requires creative doctoring. I'm an artiste Dr. Cuddy, don't rush me." He turned to walk away but took a last sideways glance at his boss to answer her second question. "I had a rough night. I had to catch up on the last five days worth of General Hospital on Soap net."

"Yeah well, while you were watching Alexis have her baby and Sonny go head to head with his mob rival, we were trying to keep people in this REAL hospital alive." Cuddy shook her head.

"Be still my heart. Cuddy, are you a closet General Hospital watcher? We should start a club." House smiled indulgently, loving a good sparring match with the lovely Dr. Lisa Cuddy.

"I want that file on my desk by day's end. And you still owe me half of this week's clinic hours."

"I thought we were tight Cuddy. Why you gotta play me like that?" House put on a gangster bravado to further mock her seriousness.

"End of the day House!" Cuddy called after him. He merely waved her off.

**OOxxxOO**

The break room House used for his meetings with his three person staff was awash of disagreement as he walked through the doors. Foreman, Chase and Cameron were all taking turns arguing their perspective on the most recent patient the hospital had admitted.

"Now, now children. No more fighting over which one of you I love more. Cause I can barely tolerate any of you." He took his place at the front of the room by the empty whiteboard. "Doctor Cameron, I see you've learned that my markers aren't for little girls with delusions of grandeur." He commented on the untouched state of his only teaching tool.

"Where have you been it's the middle of the day?" Foreman jumped on House's tardiness.

"Dean Cuddy has been holding me hostage, telling me what a horrible job the three of you have been doing. Mommy's very disappointed in you three." House smirked internally. "But I told her that it wasn't really your fault" House paused at the stunned looks on his staff's faces. "She's holding you to the impossible standards of being as good as me. That's just completely unfair." As each face deflated in front of him House's smile grew. "So what ungrateful patient are we treating today?"

"Seven year old boy presenting with fever, vomiting blood, and severe abdominal pain." Chase tapped his pen on the chart in front of him.

"Alright then, this is going to be fun." House shrugged out of his jacket, preparing to diagnose.

**OOxxxOO**

Dr. Lisa Cuddy rubbed her eyes and glanced to the clock on the far wall of her office. The time read 11:55 and the quiet of the hospital in the middle of the night seemed to further her fatigue. The administration in her wing of the hospital had long since left as she had planned to do when she had arrived at six that morning.

"Oh Dr. Cuddy I didn't know you were still here." House leaned on his cane with each step he took toward her desk, feigning surprise.

"How were you going to manage getting that file on my desk if I had left and locked my office door?" Cuddy dropped her pen on her desk, leaning back in her chair.

"Foreman's been teaching me a few tricks. I would have been gone in sixty seconds." House stood in front of Cuddy's desk, finally noticing her state of dress.

"That's some dress there Cuddy. I should sit down before I embarrass both of us." House sat down with his cane over his legs and a look of complete satisfaction on his face.

"I asked you to have this on my desk by day's end." She told him pointedly.

"And I did." House agreed. He looked to the clock which had not yet hit midnight. "I still have a minute or two; maybe I should correct those spelling errors."

"Well, thank you for completing it." Cuddy sighed in defeat.

"Oh no, that dress you're wearing….you weren't supposed to go on a date tonight were you?" House widened his eyes in mock surprise.

Cuddy didn't answer him. She pursed her lips and glared at one of her brightest doctors. He had managed to destroy a perfectly good evening, or what had the potential to be one. She shook her head, picking up the file House had just dropped on her desk, looking it over and signing the bottom, making a few notes in another file that was on her desk.

"So if you had somewhere to be, why were you hanging around here waiting for me?" House thought for a moment, "Don't tell me you're having an affair with Jorge the nighttime Janitor." House pointed a finger at her in triumph.

"I've got an eight a.m. meeting with the board tomorrow morning and needed this file to finish preparing the numbers." Cuddy made the final few notations on her computer, squinting at the bright light of the screen in the darkened office.

"Sorry." House stated.

Cuddy's head flew up at hearing him say sorry with an expression of disbelief on her face. She observed him for a beat before raising an eyebrow with obvious lack of amusement. "No you aren't" she argued.

"You're right. I'm not. But it was worth saying just to see the look on your face" he grinned, pleased with himself for playing with her head. Cuddy always proved to be a worthy opponent, even when he didn't want one.

"It's late so…" Cuddy trailed off thinking House might take the hint.

"What exactly was it I was keeping you from this evening?" House asked suddenly.

"Nothing." She shrugged, keenly aware of the dress she had donned earlier in anticipation of her evening out.

"So it was a date." House concluded. At Cuddy's curious look he explained. "If it had been work related you would have just told me but obviously you're now regretting the idea of going out with anyone who isn't even close to the perfection of male specimen that I am." He raised both eyebrows suggestively.

"Yeah, that's it," Cuddy nodded sarcastically.

"You look wrecked," House told her with his effortless lack of tact.

"Thanks. I'm going for the crazed doctor look that seems so popular in your department." She stood from her chair, turned off the screen on her computer, preparing to leave. House didn't seem to catch the second hint she threw him or he simply didn't care as he didn't move from the chair in front of her desk.

"Yeah well, you shouldn't be spending so much time here at the hospital. It can't be healthy; I don't know why you'd be hanging around here so late, you should be out getting a life" he chides.

Cuddy just stared at him incredulously. "But you've kept me here talking for far too long. I have to get some sleep; I knew I shouldn't have sat down to talk when you asked me to."

Without further ado House strode from the office and toward the bank of elevators, leaving a frustrated and tired Lisa Cuddy behind him.

"I must be a masochist to keep him around." She turned, looking the office door behind her.

The elevator arrived for House as Cuddy was walking down the hallway toward it. He got inside but made no effort to hold the door for her. Cuddy looked up from pulling her keys from her purse to see the doors begin to close. She jumped into action, hitting the closing doors at the last second to trigger the sensor and open them again.

"I see holding the elevator for me was too much to ask." She muttered, pushing her hair out of her face.

"Oh Dr. Cuddy, were you needing the elevator too?" House pretended to just be noticing her on the lift.

Fiery eyes tore into House, "You're a real prick you know that."

"And yet you keep me around," he smiled smugly.

"I don't really have a choice. It takes time to make a conclusive diagnoses of schizophrenia." House watched appreciatively as she folded her arms over her ample chest.

"You wound me Cuddy. I thought you were one of the only ones here who knew I wasn't crazy." He adjusted his bag over his shoulder.

"You're right, you're not crazy. That would be giving you an excuse for being a complete ass." Cuddy glanced up to see what floor they were on; the ride seemed to be taking an eternity

"I already know you want to sleep with me Cuddy, you don't have to gush." House got a whiff of her hazelnut scented hair when she flipped it to her other shoulder to look at him.

"Been there, done that and didn't bother to buy the T-shirt." Cuddy cursed the second the words left her mouth. She had done well not to bring up her past with Gregory House and he seemed not to care to mention it except in vague comedic references.

"You didn't realize what an amazing lay I was back then. If the years hadn't been so rough on you I would be inclined to let you have another go." Guilt tightened around his stomach, annoying House to no end. Cuddy was usually up for a good verbal battle but House knew there were some lines even his uncouth mouth didn't cross and he was teetering on the edge of one at that moment.

"At least I've still got use of all my limbs." She shot back, feeling her body shake with the effort it was taking to keep from hitting him.

"That's because you didn't have yourself as a doctor." House mentally winced, not knowing why he had insisted on taunting her tonight after he had obviously ruined her dinner plans.

They walked into the underground parking garage, Cuddy rushing ahead to get to her car, House lagging behind and watching her slumped shoulders tighten with each step she took.

"Thanks for lifting my spirits tonight. I needed it." She bit out facetiously. Hitting the unlock button on her keys the lights on her Lexus sedan blinked.

"Hey Lisa, I-" House was cut off by Cuddy's door slamming shut and the engine turning over. "Should learn to quit while I'm ahead." He opened up his own car door, sliding in.

Gunning his convertible's engine House tried to drown out the nattering in his ear telling him he should have taken the time he had with Lisa to find out what was so obviously on her mind instead of tormenting her. A small smirk lit his lips thinking how fun arguing with her had been though, Wilson never rose to the occasion and the three stooges were too easy of a target.

House was loath to admit it but Lisa Cuddy was the closest thing he had to an equal in the hospital. It was that realization that sent him running years before when they met in college. Now it was what drew him to her, why he spent so much of his time teasing or annoying her; it was time spent with her.

_**TBC**_


	2. Chapter 2

**AN**: See chapter 1 for disclaimer. Thanks to everyone who review. Glad you're interested in this story.

**Chapter 2**

"What would he have been doing here so late in the night?" Cameron followed Chase into the glass incased break room they had commandeered as their working area.

"I don't think I want to know the answer to that but Reynolds says he saw him leaving his office just before midnight." Chase responded, placing his stack of files on the table. "Knowing House he was probably setting booby traps for us."

Cameron poured herself a cup of coffee trying to guess at what House was doing at the hospital so late into the night. Getting into House's head was a favored past time of hers, in a determined attempt to figure out what he wanted in a woman.

"Who's Reynolds?" Cameron sipped at her coffee as she wondered out loud.

"He's a night orderly on the fifth floor." Chase told her, turning to see Foreman enter the room.

"I don't think I've ever met him." Cameron shrugged.

"Sure you have, you're just too interested in what House is saying or doing to notice." Foreman's shoulders shook in silent laughter.

"Ah, so that's why you got all glassy eyed when we were talking about House staying late." Chase shared a look with Foreman. "Or were you just wishing you'd been here with him."

"Okay, you two have had your fun now, can it." Cameron reprimanded them.

"It would appear as though Cameron's unrequited love is a touchy subject with her." Chase and Foreman continued to tease their colleague.

"Who said anything about the love being unrequited?" Cameron asked cheekily.

Neither man was sure what she meant by that comment, deciding it would be safest not to address it; they both focused on the current case files instead. Time passed in silence as all three doctors looked over the pending cases they had and got caught up on notes from passed ones. When the clock on the wall passed nine-thirty Foreman sighed in frustration, leaning back in his chair.

"Where the hell is House?" He complained.

"If he doesn't get here soon Cuddy's going to have his head." Chase didn't bother to look up from his notes.

"Cuddy's in a meeting all morning so she's not going to find out." House did his best to storm into the room. "Unless of course one of you little kiddies is planning on running to Mommy and tattling." His bag made a thump when he dropped it onto the table top.

"After your run in with Dr. Cuddy yesterday when you came in late I'm surprised you risked it today." Foreman prodded.

"Does anyone in this hospital actually work or do they just try to break the record for fastest traveling gossip? And Cuddy doesn't scare me - well she does but only in the good way." He raised his eyebrows at the group.

"There's a good way for someone to scare you?" Cameron inquired.

House opened his mouth to answer her but Foreman saved her. "Allison and I have to get to some patients from yesterday." He stood to gather his things to get out of the room as quickly as possible. He wasn't in the mood to take too much of House's abuse.

"That leaves Chase to join me in the clinic." House leaned heavily on his cane. "Oh it's going to be so much fun; you and me and brainless sick people. Aren't you excited?" He felt that warm fuzzy feeling while teasing Chase that had been absent in his exchange with Cuddy the night before.

Popping two pills, House moved to the door. "Since when do you go to the clinic without throwing a tantrum?" Cameron asked.

"I don't throw tantrums!" House cried indignantly. "And if you must know your Dean of Medicine is likely to have a myocardial infarction if she thinks I went to the clinic willingly and that would get her to stop bothering me for at least..." he did the quick calculation in his head "three weeks."

"You're sick." Foreman stated in disgust.

"No. But I likely will be after dealing with all those germs in the clinic." For a moment it looked as though he was going to say something else but thought better of it or just got bored and walked away.

"Have fun." Foreman called to Chase's retreating form.

"Gee thanks" he said, following House to the clinic as though destined for the electric chair.

**OOxxxOO**

Chase was moving as quickly and efficiently as he could throughout the clinic, treating and releasing patients at an unusually high rate. He had been so busy with his own patients that he hadn't bothered to notice where House was or what patients he was treating.

Grabbing another chart from the stack, he reviewed its contents as he made his way through the clinic in search of his boss. With no sign of him in any of the exam rooms or at the administration station Chase took a chance and headed to the splint and casting alcove which Gregory House was currently occupying.

"Seriously?" Chase cried.

House took his eyes off his video game to stare at the younger man nonplussed. "No breaks allowed while on clinic duty Dr. Chase." He reprimanded.

"I'm not going to be your lackey anymore House, either you help clear the patients or I'm going to help Cameron and Foreman." Chase threatened, feeling a surge of empowerment.

"You forget that I'm your boss." House shook his finger at the man.

"And you forget that I'm yours." Cuddy said from the doorway.

"Cuddy I see you survived your little meeting this morning, hope I didn't keep you up too late last night." House left his comment purposefully vague to draw a reaction from both Cuddy and Chase.

"I knew it was too good to be true when they told me you were down here in the clinic." She walked further into the room.

"Who are '_they_'?" House asked. "Your little spies" he eyed Chase "snitch on me once shame on me, snitch on me twice and your lips may get permanently attached to the Dean of Medicine's bottom." Cuddy tilted her head in disapproval. "But what a fine bottom it is."

"Dr. Chase didn't say a word to me, there is no end to the many people loyal enough to tell me when you've gone rogue." She turned to Chase, "You're excused from clinic duty for the rest of the week Dr. Chase. I believe Doctors Foreman and Cameron could use your help upstairs."

Chase wasted no time high-tailing it out of the clinic and away from the powder-keg in the splinting room.

"Be a childish ass on your own time. This is my hospital's time and I expect you to treat patients." She plucked the game from his hands.

"What about your time." The words escaped his mouth before he could call them back. He had no idea what he was about to do but whatever it was it was stupid and dangerous.

"What are you talking about?" Her brow furrowed in confusion.

"You said I can't be a childish ass on your hospital's time but what about your time. Your personal time?" Neither blinked for fear of what would become of them if they did, choosing instead to stare one another down.

"You're not making any sense," came her retort.

"I made you miss your dinner date last night so I figure it's only fair that I take you out tonight to make up for it," he concluded, popping a Vicodin.

"You're joking right?" The sudden feeling of excitement was squashed down in favor of Cuddy's logical thinking. Nothing Greg House said could be taken seriously, especially not if it appeared he was being sincere.

"No. Why? Do you think the prospect of me asking you out is funny?" House didn't want to admit it but his pride was the tiniest bit injured thinking Cuddy wouldn't accept.

"Not particularly but I think you do." She eyed him carefully, looking for any signs that he was playing with her.

"Normally I would say you're right but this time my intentions are noble." He stood up with the aid of his cane, leaning forward into her personal sphere. "It's just a meal between friends to make up for the meal you missed because of me last night." He shrugged, down playing the sheer unbelievably of the entire conversation.

"If you're making up the meal I missed then you're admitting to doing something wrong but that can't be because the amazing Dr. Gregory House doesn't make mistakes." Cuddy was still leery but was quickly melting under the heat of his gaze.

"Yeah well I won't tell if you won't."

"About the mistake or the dinner?" Cuddy questioned with an eyebrow raised.

"Both, each of them spells disaster for my rep." He brushed by her making sure to contact as much of her body as he could. "And you know what they say…all you have is your rep." He moved further out of the splint room before turning one last time. "I'll meet you here at six. And dress casual."

Lisa was left standing in the splint room with her eyes wide and her mouth moving with nothing coming out. She had just agreed to a date with Greg House on a Saturday night. Well she hadn't quite agreed so much as he had badgered her until she couldn't speak then told her the place and time but the intent on his part was the same.

Snapping out of her stupor she saw the man on her mind getting ready to step on the elevator to take him out of the clinic. "House! Get back here, you still have patients to treat!"

**OOxxxOO**

Knowing House like she did, Cuddy took her time getting to the hospital after returning home to change from her work attire. She was determined to show up no earlier than fifteen minutes late to be right on time with House's schedule.

Sauntering to the front of the hospital she caught sight of her evening's date getting ready to turn and walk away. Smoothing down her fitted T-shirt and khaki jacket she hurried to catch him.

"So what? Were you just going to stand me up?" She raised an eyebrow when he spun to face her.

"I'm not the one just showing up." He made no effort to disguise his appreciative glance at her jean clad legs.

"Yeah well I was working late trying to clean up some legal messes made by one of my doctors." She shook her head.

House began walking in the direction Cuddy had come from, ensuring she was beside him before picking up the pace of his stilted gait.

"Some doctors simply have no regard for the legalities of practicing. If you want, I can kick his ass for you." He eyed her from the corner of his left eye a shit-eating grin firmly etched in his lips.

"If you can find a way to kick your own ass you could leave the hospital and make a living as a traveling carnie." Cuddy continued to walk beside House toward his car in the underground garage.

"Oh kinky Cuddy" House joked. "You know what they say about carnies: Once you've had one carnie you've had them all." He remained straight faced, waiting for Cuddy's reaction.

She made a face at him, "Oh that's just gross." She complained but couldn't manage to keep from laughing, drawing a little chuckle from House. "So where are we going?" she asked when they stopped in front of the passenger side door of House's car.

"I told you, we're getting dinner." He opened the door for her without really realizing what he was doing. Cuddy however took note of the unusual behavior and rolled her eyes when he almost closed the door on her leg.

"Why does that make me nervous?" She dropped her designer purse beside her on he floor on the car.

"Because you're a smarter than the average doctor." They peeled out of the parking garage.

**OOxxxOO**

"When you offered to buy me dinner I assumed it would involve something a little more substantial than hotdogs, chips and beer." Cuddy said from her seat in Princeton Stadium.

"But then we would have missed kick off." He gestured to the field where the Princeton Tigers were charging the field. "What could be better than hotdogs and beer at the football game on homecoming weekend?" He took a huge bite of his dinner.

"I didn't realize you had school spirit." She sipped at her beer, closing her eyes tightly against the young student's yell from beside her.

"This is the kind of school spirit I can get behind." Pointing at the field where a big tackle by the Princeton defense drew a roar from the crowd. "Oh, before I forget, put this on." He dropped an orange and black Tigers hat on her head which she adjusted into place.

At half time Princeton was down by three touchdowns and things were looking bad for the Tigers. The heat of the many bodies in the stadium had warmed both the doctors up enough that they removed their coats. Cuddy smirked seeing the Princeton Tiger's T-shirt House was wearing.

"Okay, what's this 180 all about?" The guests of the stadium had retreated to the concession stands when the athletes trekked into their dressing room.

"You mean my suddenly sunny disposition?" House's eyes stayed on her low cut shirt for a beet too long.

Raising her eyebrows at his obvious distraction she leaned into him slightly. "I was thinking more of the fact that you're willing to be seen in public at all. A far cry from your usually anti-social trademark," she paused "but we can call it sunny disposition."

"I can be sociable; there's simply no one at work I choose to be sociable with." He shrugged.

"You hang out with Wilson and you're here with me." Cuddy dropped her gaze afraid at what would come out of House's mouth in response.

"Wilson won't get the hint to go away and you, you're okay when you're not forcing clinic hours on me," the scowl on his face made Cuddy smile "so what do you say we put a little wager on this game?"

"Clinic hours?" Cuddy shifted closer to him.

"Nothing hospital related." He pointed at her until she nodded in agreement.

"You really don't want to risk spending more time in the clinic do you?" she laughed.

"Oh it's not too bad. More clinic hours means I have more time to get to level ten on Doom."

"Fine then, what bet were you thinking of?" The stadium began filling up; Cuddy and House stood to allow people to pass back to their seats. Feeling people rushing by House slipped his arm around Cuddy's waist, holding her steady.

Cuddy's shirt separated from her jeans and House's fingers brushed the skin of her hip. Everyone in the crowd stayed on their feet until the game started up again, prolonging the skin on skin contact.

"So I say the Tigers will win by a touchdown and a field goal." House laid his arm around the back of Cuddy's chair once they were seated again.

"I say they'll win by a touchdown," she countered "and if I'm right you have to buy me dinner every night next week and it has to consist of more than beer and hotdogs." She subconsciously moved closer into him.

Cuddy waited expectantly for House to announce his stakes. "Oh is it my turn?" he said in mock surprise. "When I win, I want a kiss," Cuddy masked her surprise well "a real kiss, none of that half assed peck on the cheek stuff."

Thinking it over a minute Cuddy grinned, "You've got yourself a deal." She held out her hand and House shook it.

With five minutes to go in the forth quarter the entire stadium was on their feet after watching their Tigers make a come back to tie the game twenty-four apiece. Lisa Cuddy could not remember the last time she had been to a sporting event or even the last time she had as much fun.

On a fifty-two yard drive the Tigers scored once more, sending the fans of all ages into pandemonium. As the receiver celebrated in the end-zone Cuddy celebrated in her stadium seat.

"Not much time left for them to regain possession and get that field goal," she told House

"Listen to you all sports announcer like." He tapped the brim of her hat.

"I grew up with three brothers," she said by way of explanation.

"Well then you must be well versed in loosing which is good cause you're about to loose our bet." He shifted his weight trying to ease the pain in his leg. Seeing his discomfort Cuddy dropped her hand to rub and massage the injured limb gently. Not wanting attention drawn to the movement she continued their conversation.

"You are far too confident Greg," she chided jokingly.

"First you try to molest me then you call be Greg. How much beer did you have?" House teased her. Immediately Cuddy began to withdraw her hand from his leg but House snatched her hand back to keep her from moving away. "It's okay; we'll call it a consensual molestation."

They turned back to the game just in time to see the opposition fumble the ball and Princeton recover it. On forth down and less than five seconds before the two minute mark the Tigers went for a field goal.

"They make this and you owe me a kiss Lisa." House reminded Cuddy, drawing out her name.

"Don't be counting your chickens mister."

The kicker lined himself up and called the snap placing the ball right between the uprights. The crowd seemed to double the decibel of their cheers while two rather quiet doctors shared an amused glance.

"Do I get to collect my prize?" he asked.

"I suppose although I'm not beyond being suspicious of who you had to bribe to make that happen." She answered over the noise of the patrons.

"You do have a high opinion of yourself don't you Lisa." He stressed her name again.

"You're one to-"

House bent and captured her mouth with his, feeling her lips soften against his and relax into the slow heat of the kiss.

_**TBC**_


	3. Chapter 3

**AN:** Thanks again for all the response. I only have one more exam then I have a bit of a break so I can get the chapters out faster

**Chapter 3**

Their lips moved against one another for a few slow seconds; Cuddy could feel the roughness of House's unshaven face beneath her own smooth skin. When air became necessary the two sets of swollen lips separate minutely, brushing against one another in a few more small caresses.

"I knew you wanted me." House suddenly pulled away completely. His smirk was the most self-satisfying Cuddy had ever seen. "Wilson is not going to believe this. All it took was a hotdog and football game and you were puddy." Looking to the sky he chuckled, "Cuddy Puddy. Well that just sounds wrong." He paused. "Dr. Cuddy Puddy. Now that has more of a ring, we could market you."

Cuddy turned from him with cheeks flaming while House continued to be tickled with laughter. The hotdog she had eaten earlier that evening began to take its revenge.

"So this was all one of your games?" She eyed him accusingly.

"No, of course not. Games are so juvenile…..this was a challenge." He turned smiling blue eyes on her.

"What challenge? You already had your conquest twenty years ago." Her head dipped to shield her watery orbs from his callousness. "The game's over." House leaned in to hear her quiet words. But he got the drift when she began following the moving people out of the stadium.

Halfway to the car House limped in front of her and spun around. "I was just kidding." His confession was delivered with a shrug. "Why are you taking it so seriously?"

Cuddy took a deep breath and let it out between her frown. "You're right. I should have learned by now not to take you seriously. It's my fault." She left it there, skirting around him to continue to the car.

House reached into his pocket for his pills cursing his mouth once again. He was simply unable to enjoy a moment as a normal male; instead he felt the need to bat Cuddy down a little more.

His conscious' nemesis stood beside his convertible waiting for him to unlock it. He walked to her side inserting his key. "I really was kidding. I'm not very good with 'moments'." He exaggerated the word. "Sorry." He pouted and leaned in to kiss her but she turned her head.

"The bet was for one kiss," she reminded him "you already claimed it." She opened the door for herself nearly closing House's fingers in the door this time.

The closer they got to the hospital and Cuddy's car the more anxious House became at the prospect of having her go home still angry at him. He rolled his eyes at the situation he had created for himself.

"Okay, so what do I have to do to prove to you that I'm sorry?" he relented.

Cuddy sighed. "Don't worry about it House, it's not a big deal."

"You see, that's why I don't like people. They never tell you the truth, whether they're lying about their medical history or how they really feel." They were stopped at a light affording him the opportunity to look at Cuddy. "Come on Lisa, I'm giving you the opportunity of a lifetime, I'm offering to do anything to make it up to you." He shook his head hearing the words leave his mouth.

"Fine, if you're determined to do something to show you're sincere you can do five more hours at the clinic this week without me having to chase you." She stared him down.

"But that's the best part." House whined. The light changed color; however, Cuddy's gaze did not waver. "Fine! I'll do the extra hours but it means I'm going to have to go into work on my day off tomorrow."

"Oh poor baby." She ran her fingers down his frowning cheek. With his eyes focused on the road House missed Cuddy's pleased smile in the window's reflection.

**OOxxxOO**

_**Sunday- Princeton Lacrosse Field**_

Her lungs burned as the crisp air slipped between her full lips; she heard nothing but the sound of her own breathing and the distinct footfalls fast gaining on her. She called on her reserves to give her a boost of speed, dodging to her left and moving her stick to her right hand in time to get a quick shot off.

"Goal!" The referee announced as the whistle blew.

Teammates in the familiar red and white gathered around to congratulate her on her goal before lining up around the middle of the field for the draw. She walked to the center of the field, stick held out with stick back facing in. The ball was wedged between her stick and her opponents, both waiting to for the whistle to signal they could move.

She took advantage of the short break, urging her pounding heart to slow down. A droplet of sweat slid down her brow to catch on her eyelash before continuing its journey over the smooth plains of her cheek. There were four minutes left in the game and she had not been off the field since the mandatory half-time break.

"You got this Jord!" One of her teammates yelled right before the whistle blew.

Steeling herself against her body's fatigue she and her opponent heaved their sticks upward, releasing the ball into the air. Her legs reacted before her brain could, catapulting her into the air with one hand on the bottom on her stick to snatch the ball from above their heads. Her legs were already propelling her forward before her feet hit the ground, her eyes immediately searching for a teammate to pass the ball to. With a quick snap the weighty ball was passed down the field directly into her teammate's stick.

Her work was still not done. Her eyes surveyed the field, memorizing the location and movements of every player as she positioned herself into the play. She drew her player deeper into the play, getting her confused long enough to pull out and be open for the ball.

After receiving the pass she took her roll at the head of the fan, a few feet from the net. "Set it up!" She called, sending everyone in red and white to a specific place in close proximity.

Without giving the defense the opportunity to organize themselves she passed the ball to her right. The ball moved again to the right then one step to the left only to be rocketed across to the teammates on the other side of the net. With each pass the offence moved positions, further confusing the other team.

Seeing a hole open in the defense she took her chance and took the ball, now back in her stick, in to take a shot. Her stick was pulled away from her body in preparation of the shot but with her attention so acutely focused on moving the goalie with stick tricks she didn't see a defender escape the confusion to head straight for her.

She saw the defender's stick a second too late as it came down with unbelievable force on her head. Her arms completed the motion of shooting the ball before her body hit the ground.

The whistle was blown to signal the goal then again to signal the penalty of the illegal check to the head but she didn't hear either. It was a long seven seconds before anyone realized she had not gotten up from the ground.

"Jord!" someone finally called, "Jord, are you okay?"

"What happened?" The referee moved to the fallen girl.

"Coach, Jordan's hurt" someone called.

The coach and trainers charged the field to asses the situation. By the time they arrived Jordan was moving, her eyes opened against the harsh sun but she had yet to get up.

"Jordan, are you okay?" Her coach asked.

The trainer got down beside her. "Can you move?"

"Yeah. Sorry I just got a little shaken up." She could hear the referee calling a red card on the girl who had tried to take her head off.

"You have a nasty cut there." The trainer touched the side of her head which was bleeding quite profusely. When Jordan moved further her shoulder protested drawing a moan from her tired lungs.

"Just put a bandage on it." Jordan said. "The game's almost over."

"What's wrong with your shoulder?" The trainer noticed the slow movements immediately.

"I landed on it a little hard. It's fine though." She smiled through the pain, still holding the injured arm close to her side. "See." she reassured. Steeling her nerves against the fiery pain shooting up and down her right arm she showed the trainer complete range of motion.

The trainer frowned but nodded his head and patched up the wounded head quickly, giving Jordan a hand up off the field. Her teammates and those in the stands cheered for her as she trekked back to the center of the field for another draw.

The game ended quickly from there with Jordan's team claiming the victory. As the girls began gathering their belongings to take to the dressing room she felt the first stirrings of nausea.

"You gonna be okay Jord?" One of her friends saw the blood rush from her face and her strongly favoring her right shoulder.

After a moment taken to compose herself Jordan answered. "I'm good, just feeling a little heady." She smiled, "Princeton girls are brutes." Jordan stood to lift her bag, dropping it just as quickly and crying out in pain.

"We're going to get that shoulder looked at." The trainer stated resolutely. "And maybe get stitches for that head while we're at it."

The Princeton trainer shared a look with the trainer from the visiting team. "I'll take you to the University hospital, I know a few people there who can get you in at the clinic right away." He told them

"I'm fine. Really." She waved them off.

"I won't clear you to play again until you get your shoulder checked out." The threat seemed to work its magic.

"Okay, okay let's go." She conceded. Her hearing was cutting in and out as the pain resonated with a roar inside her head. Not sure where she had agreed to go, she followed the head trainers.

**OOxxxOO**

Princeton's lacrosse team trainer kept his word and got Jordan rushed ahead; as an All American athlete she was accustom to receiving the top and most expedient care. Her shoulder throbbed with every careful step she took, as the movement jostled the injured limb. Once she was seated in one of the exam rooms a young doctor appeared.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Cameron." She smiled at the girl, still in her lacrosse tank and short kilt. "I don't seem to have a medical history for you." Her brow furrowed.

"I think my coach is having it faxed over from my school." Jordan answered her.

"You're the team trainer?" She asked the man standing in the corner of the room.

"Yes. She impacted the ground with her right shoulder directly." He told the doctor.

"Alright, let's have a look." Cameron placed her clip board down. She and Jordan removed the ice that had been wrapped around the shoulder to keep the swelling down.

"Well there's some definite swelling." Cameron commented.

"No shit Sherlock." Jordan rolled her eyes.

"I'm going to send you to get an x-ray so we can rule out any kind of break." Cameron pulled back the bandage on Jordan's head ignoring her biting remark. "That looks like a pretty nasty cut. I'll have someone come in here and stitch it up while we're waiting for the x-ray. Are you allergic to any medications?" Cameron asked.

"Not that I'm aware of." Jordan replied with suspicion. "Why?"

"We're going to have to give you a shot of cortisone so we can move your shoulder for the x-rays without pain." Cameron had already mentally left the room. Her morally charged thoughts were disturbed by the athlete's sudden rush to the head of the line.

"Okay." Jordan felt pressure building in her head and her otherwise healthy limbs begin to shake. "I think I'm dehydrated; could I get some water?"

"I've got some out in the car with my stuff." The trainer was already moving to the door.

"Thanks." Jordan called after him.

"I'll have someone in for the stitches and to take you up to x-ray in a bit." Cameron left the room and her rather ungrateful patient.

Five minutes and an entire bottle of water later another doctor appear in the room. "Someone ordered stitches?" He asked cheerfully.

"There must be some mistake; I ordered a full body Swedish massage." Jordan replied.

"It looks like you've been man-handled enough for one day." The young man commented, quickly getting to work on the head wound.

"What this?" She indicated her shoulder. "This is nothing." A few stitches in and Jordan chuckled slightly.

"What?" The doctor asked.

"You're an intern aren't you?" She asked him.

"How could you tell?"

"Your technique is textbook and you keep looking over your shoulder as though one of the residents are going to be standing there judging you." The explanation drew a raised eyebrow from the doctor.

"How do you know what the textbook suture technique is?" He was now quite intrigued.

"First year med student," she confided, one hand rose in surrender. "The textbook is all I know."

"We should get you up to x-ray to get that shoulder taken care of before you have to go back to school." He nodded to the trainer. "If you'd like you're welcome to wait in the waiting room but we'll likely need this exam room back."

**OOxxxOO**

_**45 Minutes Later**_

"Hi Jordan, I'm Dr. Chase. Dr. Cameron had another patient to see." His friendly accent brightened the room. "The x-rays came back clean so it's likely we're dealing with a separated shoulder." He held the arm with both hands. "I'm going to poke around a bit; you let me know what hurts."

"Nothing's going to hurt." She rolled her eyes for the umpteenth time that day. "Your Dr. Cameron shot me full of cortisone before the x-ray so I'm feeling no pain right now." She told him. "I'm going to need an MRI to see the extent of the damage to the soft tissue." She told him seriously.

"It sounds like you know what you're talking about." Chase laughed.

"I'm an athlete, CTs, x-rays and MRIs are our friends." She smiled. "When I was fourteen doctors told me I couldn't get injured anymore because I had reached my quota of radiation through x-rays for the year."

"I'll go put in the requisition for the MRI and I'll see what I can do about getting you a room upstairs to wait in." His smile remained as he left the room.

**OOxxxOO**

_**1 Hour Later**_

"Seriously Tom you don't have to stay here with me. They'll find me a room soon and get me in to be scanned." Jordan urged her trainer to go back to the hotel and rest.

"I'd feel better knowing what's wrong and this way I can make sure you don't decide you're fine again and sneak out." He eyed her wearily.

"Okay but I-" with no warning Jordan vomited everything she had put in her stomach that morning. Her head pounded with greater ferocity at the sudden jilted movement. "Wow, that really sucked," she whispered.

Tom was already on his feet and to her side. "Are you alright?" His concern was palpable once again. He was paid to keep all of the team's athletes healthy and he was watching as the team's best player deteriorated in front of him.

"Besides the fact that my breakfast decided to make a surprise appearance I'm peachy," she ground out.

"Lay back and rest. I'm going to get a doctor."

Tom noticed the waiting room had surprisingly thinned out and that the two doctors Jordan had seen earlier were standing with two others.

"Excuse me. Dr. Chase, Jordan just vomited." He decided to address the doctor Jordan had appeared to like more.

Chase took in the man's athletic gear and immediately remembered the girl with the shoulder injury. "I'll have someone in there to move her and clean it up immediately." Chase replied. "She's likely reacting to the pain." He told the worried man.

"She says she still isn't feeling any pain in her shoulder." He informed them.

"She's having a reaction to the cortisone shot; when we get her medical history it will likely tell us that she's mildly allergic." Cameron cut in.

"Jordan's been given cortisone before and she' never been sick from it." Tom assured them

"Wait, you gave a patient drugs before reading their medical history?" House's blue orbs bugged out of his head.

"She said she didn't have any allergies." Cameron defended herself.

"Oh that's good, you let a – how old is she?" He asked the trainer.

"Nineteen."

"You let a nineteen year old tell you want medications she's allergic to. Way to go Cameron, someone that age has had limited exposure to medications, not to mention Mommy and Daddy may have neglected to tell her what allergies she has." His sarcasm followed him and the other three doctors in the direction of the girl's room.

House forced open the door with a flourish, greeting the young girl lying on the bed. "Oh we're treating the competition now I see." He commented, seeing her red and white uniform. "Lovely," he said to the vomit covering a spot on the floor "all this for a shoulder injury?" He glared at the body part in question. "Do you have a name or should I just call you 24?" He indicated the number on her top.

"Jordan." She replied with eyes hooded to keep out the bright light of the room.

"And Jordan, do you have a last name or are you jumping on the one name bandwagon?" He poked and prodded at her shoulder with no protests from Jordan.

"Cuddy. Jordan Cuddy." She answered with resignation, the pain in her head had multiplied by 100 since she had vomited and there was no sign of it easing.

House's eyes bugged for the second time as did those of his staff. "You wouldn't have a relation to-"

"Dr. Lisa Cuddy?" Jordan interrupted "Yes, you tend to build a relation with someone when you spend nine months in their womb."

"No way!" House exclaimed, "Cuddy has a kid."

"Listen isth there way sto head." Jordan's words petered out.

"Was she just slurring her words?" House turned to the other doctors.

Foreman jumped into action; taking a light out of his pocket and shining it into the half closed his of the patient. "Pupils are dilated," he announced. Foreman felt around her head with still no word from Jordan. "Where did this come from?" he asked the trainer.

The trainer looked at the stitches the doctor had found. "She was hit in the head right before she fell on her shoulder. Dr. Cameron had someone come in here to stitch it up."

"You had a patient with a head injury and you didn't check for hematoma! What are you a med student? No, even they would know better." House turned on Cameron.

"She's loosing consciousness fast!" Foreman shouted. "We need a CT and to get her into surgery to stop the bleeding now." Foreman and Chase unlocked the bed and rushed her out of the room.

"Good going Cameron. One way to buck for that promotion is to kill the Dean of Medicine's kid." House sneered.

_**TBC**_


	4. Chapter 4

**AN:** Sorry this took a little while, had a huge midterm but done them all now so I have a bit more time. Thanks for the reviews everyone! You're all wonderful!

**Jane QD** - This is very weird cause I was going to call her Jenna but changed it right before I posted but I never downloaded it to when it had that name so I have no idea how it is that you read that...like I said very weird.

**littleblackant** - I'm actually Canadian and Lacrosse is Canada's National Sport. And I spent six months in the 'land down under' where I played some lacrosse with some of the national team players and hung out with the coach. You guys won the Bronze in the Lacrosse World cup this year! Thanks for bearing the sports terms though lol.

**OOxxxOO**

**Chapter 4**

Foreman stripped the latex gloves from his hands, slamming them into the biohazard bin next to the OR scrub room. Scrubbing out, he walked up to the observation room where he found his colleagues.

Crossing his arms he looked out over the operation still in progress. "We cut it close." He shook his head. "We've stopped most of the bleeding but it may not hold. I've never seen intracranial bleeding from a traumatic subdural hematoma like that before. I don't know how she stayed conscious as long as she did."

"If she's Cuddy's kid she did just to piss me off," House huffed.

"Shouldn't someone phone Dr. Cuddy and let her know?" Chase asked gently.

"You get right on that Doctor and be sure to mention you saw the patient one hour before she nearly bled to death." The disheveled doctor dared him.

"While you're at it you might as well tell her that we had to remove almost 2 percent of the brain, more specifically a portion of the left posterior frontal lobe. She's lost a portion of her basil ganglia and Broca's Area; there's going to be at least some amount of aphasia but we won't know until she wakes up….if she wakes up." Two pairs of confused eyes turned on the neurologist. "There is very little about the brain that can be predicted, she could have damage that we haven't detected yet."

"How big was the incision?" Despite his question House managed to sound uninterested.

"About three inches, maybe a millimeter or two more." Foreman's arms tightened across his chest waiting for the other shoe to drop. "Why?"

"The bigger the cut the more hair you have to cut and if there's anything worse than a post operative patient it's a stilly little girl who's upset because she lost a chunk of her hair. It doesn't seem to matter that their life was just saved, no, because in their twisted peanut sized minds they would have been better off dead than with a little hair loss."

"We shaved back a very small area behind her ear." Foreman explained.

"Good. She has nice hair." House turned to exit the observation room. "Oh and Cameron, a word of advice" all three heads tuned his way "hide."

"What happened?" Chase asked once House had left.

"Nothing, everything, I don't know." Cameron shook at the thought. "She didn't say anything about hitting her head so severely; she was talking and able to focus while I was examining her."

"But you know that a traumatic head injury can take hours if not weeks to reveal symptoms." Foreman had a look of disappointment. "You better hope House keeps Cuddy busy with all his lawsuits so she doesn't have time to file one against you." He smiled to soften the bite of his words.

**OOxxxOO**

House hummed under his breath to calm his rapid succession of thoughts from dizzying him. A thorough mental checklist brought him to the conclusion that Cuddy had never alluded to having a child during any one of their past heated interactions. Rounding the corner to his office he gripped the handle on the glass door, pushing against it and stopping short just inside.

"Please tell me you're wearing a short skirt and crotchless panties because this is the beginning of many a fantasy." House let the door swing closed behind him and moved further into the room.

Lisa Cuddy sat in House's office chair, her arms crossed, eyes narrowed waiting patiently for him to ask her in his ever eloquent way why she was there.

"Sorry I'm all tapped out for the month, you're going to have to go somewhere else for your blood." He took a seat in one of the chairs on the other side of the desk, placing his cane across his knees. "You've taken over my office; does that mean I get yours?" He leaned back in his seat.

"Don't play coy," she reprimanded. "You know why I'm here and it's not to reorganize this disaster you call a desk."

"You say that like it's my fault. I didn't do anything wrong! If anything I thought you would go after Cameron," he argued.

"How does cutting out on clinic duty an hour early have anything to do with Dr. Cameron?" Cuddy's expression turned surprised. "I don't think I want to know the answer to that question."

"Oh that, well that couldn't be helped, everyone wants my expertise but I'm only one man." He laid his head against the back of the chair in dramatic fashion.

"Oh woe is you. I thought you were going to give me a break from chasing you this week. Instead, I get a phone call at the hospital lunch symposium telling me that you abandoned the clinic and took three doctors with you." Cuddy rolled her cerulean eyes before landing on him once again with greater interest. "What did you think I was talking about?"

"Well that obviously." He quickly backtracked. "So seriously crotchless panties?" He waggled his eyebrows.

The door opened behind him and although House couldn't see who had interrupted he knew it was going to be trouble.

"She made it out of surgery without anymore bleeding problems and is on her way to recovery but Foreman said it doesn't look too-" Chase glanced up from his file, taking a step back in surprise at seeing Dr. Cuddy sitting at the desk. "Dr. Cuddy, hi." He glanced at House but not long enough to see his slight shake of the head to warn the young doctor that Cuddy wasn't aware of the situation at hand. "I'm really sorry for what happened, I would have checked for a TH injury immediately if I had known she had come in with a cut on her head."

"You had a female patient come in with a traumatic head injury and let me guess someone decided that diagnoses was too simply," she glared at House.

"No, House had nothing to do with it, if anything he caught the problem Cameron and I had missed." Chase's genuine tone made House want to gage.

"Chase, I don't know about Dr. Cuddy here but I know my ass is chapped with all the time you spend kissing it." He lifted his cane off his lap, ready to make his escape.

"Why do I feel a lawsuit coming?" She rubbed her brow. "Who's the patient?"

Chase turned confused eyes on House who simply shook his head at Chase's big mouth. "You mean House didn't tell you?"

"No House didn't tell me." She glared at him accusingly.

"Oh come on, we've been in here all of two minutes and I didn't want to interrupt our conversation about crotchless panties."

"Who's the patient Chase?" Cuddy reiterated.

"Jordan Cuddy."

Cuddy was silent, digesting that information. "Jordan." She whispered the name almost reverently. Shaking herself from her surprise, her professional mask slipped into place. "What happened?"

Chase opened and closed his mouth a few times hoping House would step in and explain the diagnosis to Cuddy; however, he was looking at Chase as expectantly as Cuddy was.

"From what we can determine from the team trainer she took a hit to the head and fell hard on her shoulder. The only sign of distress seemed to be her shoulder and we had an intern suture up her head." Chase took a deep breath.

"How did the patient end up in surgery?" Cuddy asked sharply.

House made careful note of the detachment evident in her tone. "While we were waiting for the MRI to become available for a scan on her shoulder we determined she had a subdural hematoma. The bleeding was severe so Foreman got her into surgery immediate." Chase hesitated. "The bleeding had done a significant amount of damage to the Broca's Area and Basil Ganglia, during the surgery they had to remove 2 percent of the damaged tissue to prevent further necrosis."

"Alright Chase you did a very good job and you're very brave. Now leave." House placated the young man.

Chase wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth and wait for Cuddy to returned from her surprised stupor and take it out on him. House was used to the wrath of Cuddy so he had no qualms about leaving him alone with her.

"Doctor's in my hospital almost killed my own daughter." Cuddy let out a hollow laugh, startling House. "Tell me that isn't irony."

"Want to explain how a girl that as far as I remember doesn't exist is currently in a recovery room?" House didn't receive any reply. "Wilson's going to love this." He smirked.

Cuddy rose from the chair and made for the door. "I'd appreciate if you would finish your clinic duty."

"Where are you going?" House turned in the seat to watch her at the door.

"To recovery."

**OOxxxOO**

The day's light was fading fast in the recovery wing, causing the extra artificial lighting to blink on; the long bulbs protested with distinct sounding static electricity. Cuddy slowed her steps the closer she came to the busy area of surgical recoveries. Nurses hurried from one bed to another, checking vitals and medication levels of each one.

Standing a foot beyond the bed's side Cuddy cast an unsure gaze over the prone figure lying in the bulky hospital bed surrounded by stark walls. The noise of the busy hospital melted into the far recesses of her mind creating a sharp vein of silence spanning no further than the distance between her daughter and herself.

A nurse passed by unnoticed to Cuddy save for the flutter of hair it stirred on her daughter's head. The deep brown tresses danced with a fluidity and spirit their wearer once possessed in spades. A bandage of white hid the long bangs she had taken to wearing while the hospital lighting dulled the streaks the summer days had bleached lighter. Her once sun-kissed cheeks were pale and drawn, showcasing pronounced bone structure. The body that had once housed vibrant energy and ferocity for athletic living was broken and as had happened less than a decade before, she was barren of solutions.

The concept of time evaporated into the stale re-circulated air until Cuddy was jolted from her scrutiny by the movement of the recovery nurse checking vitals.

"Poor kid." She indicated Jordan with a nod of her head. "She took one hit to the head and that was it." The nurse was one of the few with enough seniority to feel comfortable making conversation with the Dean of Medicine. "Her team's trainer and the Princeton trainer brought her in; she's apparently an All American." The nurse made a final notation of Jordan's medical chart. "After all the years I've worked here, it's cases likes these that get to me. She came in wearing her uniform you know; finished out the game after taking the hit. Not the smartest move medically but you have to give her credit for heart."

Something the other woman said managed to garner a response from Cuddy. "What locker have they put her clothes in?"

The nurse remained silent a moment, confused by the off-beat question but answered without comment. "I believe twenty-four."

"The same as her jersey." Cuddy responded, although the quiet tones were obviously not meant for others to hear so the nurse simply replaced the chart and moved to the next bed. She concluded it was none of her business to know why Dr. Cuddy knew the young girl's uniform number.

Letting her eyes roam dangerous overtop of the bed, Cuddy addressed the haunting CT scans pre and post operative. The damage could have been recognized by an untrained eye as a noticeable portion of the left side of the neurological tissue was missing in the post-operative scans where it had been ballooned with blood within the cranium pre-op. As a doctor looking at the pictures she felt futility, a sense of frustration at the lack of ability to fix the problem despite her training. As a mother she felt hopelessness grip her very soul.

Cuddy clung tightly to the limp hand closest to her, running her thump over the IV line. "Rest now little one." She whispered more for her own benefit than the unconscious listener.

The Dean of Medicine straightened her shoulders, set her chin and burned a path out of the recovery room. She made it as far as the main floor of the hospital before being bombarded by the one doctor she wanted to see least.

"So Cuddy, did you kiss it and make it better?" He snickered.

She made a show of looking at her watch. "I've got three minutes to spare, go ahead, make whatever cutting remarks or crude and insensitive comments you have tucked away in the dungeon of a mind you have but you better make it quick."

"Well it's no fun if you don't play along." House pouted. "Well at least not as much fun. Oh the drama….so your little secret is out. I've got to give you credit Cuddy, you sure do keep the best ones." His eyebrows traveled up and down in an effort to provoke her into response.

"Can't you go find someone else to bother? Like Wilson or one of your minions?" She sighed.

"Wilson isn't as dedicated as me; he doesn't come in on Sundays." House whined.

"You're here because you were an ass yesterday." She interrupted.

"And my minions as you called them have been banished to the clinic as much for penance as to keep them from running into you. And anyway, they're feeling too sorry for themselves to be any fun."

Cuddy opened her mouth to respond but was silenced by a staggered group parading through the wide hallways appearing much like an army of red and white. Leading the pack was a man House vaguely recalled from somewhere.

"Hi Doctor, how is she?" The man asked urgently.

"Huh?" House replied with a blank face.

"I was in here earlier with an athlete. You took her to surgery, something about a hematoma." He squinted in disbelief that he would be forgotten so fast.

"I know the case but I don't remember you." He shrugged, eyeing the group. "I see you brought the posse back with you."

"The team, they wanted to see how she was doing. This is Coach Myers." He pointed to the woman wearing red and white gear herself.

"Great, trivia bits for my future stint on Jeopardy." He drawled. "I'm sure our Dean of Medicine here could give you a better update on the patient than I could. She just came from seeing her." Cuddy shot House a look of surprise he obviously knew her better than she had thought.

"I apologize, I didn't realize you were the Dean." Tom-the-trainer blushed.

"It's nice to see the head of the hospital taking an interest in one of my athletes. Jordan is too good to loose." She gushed, intuitively knowing the news wasn't good and wanting to avoid having to realize it.

"Jordan is in serious condition right now. She had severe bleeding into her brain; it had to be stopped by surgery." Cuddy answered.

"Is she going to be alright?" The coach asked.

Cuddy took a deep breath. "To be honest I don't know." She admitted.

"Sorry to bother you, it's just that these girls come to my team from all over, many of them far away from their families and I feel completely responsible for them." Coach Myers deflated with worry over the player. "I got your title but I don't believe I got your name Doctor." She trailed off hoping to have a name to thank her with.

"Dr. Lisa Cuddy." She held out her hand out of habit.

Coach Myers shook the outstretched hand before the words could resonate. "Lisa Cuddy." She repeated. "You're Jordan's mother." The statement was laced with disbelief.

"So you were the person she was going to have dinner with on Friday. So much for the one night stand hottie idea." The girls on the team blanched at the revelation of a bit of Jordan's past.

House felt his gut twist at hearing that Cuddy hadn't had a date with a guy but her teenage daughter. He felt like an even bigger heel than he had the night before when he choked after their kiss.

"She never mention your were a doctor let alone the Dean of Princeton Medicine. Then again Jord never mentions much about herself." One of the girls said.

"Jordan enjoys being an enigma." Cuddy's jaw clenched. "You're welcome to wait here; however, she won't be moved to her own room for a few hours yet and she isn't expected to wake up for a few days after the surgery." She mentally added 'if she wakes up at all'.

"We've all had a long day. I think we'll go back to the hotel so they can rest up. I feel better knowing there's someone here looking out for Jordan." Coach Myers nodded at Cuddy.

"Of course. Thank you for coming by." She looked at the group. "All of you. I'll be sure to let you know if anything changes."

The mass of people turned to vacate the building, leaving Cuddy and House staring after them.

"And the drama keeps coming." He joked. "So only one question remains with potential for even more drama." He stared down the woman he was slowly beginning to have fuzzy feelings for, leaning heavily on his cane with the extra weight of that realization. "Who's your little girl's father?"

_**TBC**_


	5. Chapter 5

**AN:** Finally done midterms thanks to everyone who has reviewed and sorry about the grammar, but I just have no patients to proof too thoroghly after sending most of the day studying lol. As for the question about me being a doctor, I was well on my way to getting my degree in neurobiology (hence the injury) but decided after third year to go to law school instead lol.

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

"And the drama keeps coming." He joked. "So only one question remains with potential for even more drama." He stared down the woman he was slowly beginning to have fuzzy feelings for, leaning heavily on his cane with the extra weight of that realization. "Who's your little girl's father?"

"For a man who does everything possible to avoid answering personal questions, you sure do ask enough of them." Cuddy spun on her heel to retreat into her office.

House did his best to keep up with Cuddy's determined pace; he wasn't going to let her out of answering his questions too easily. "You were supposed to have dinner with your kid on Friday."

Cuddy shot him an unimpressed glare and continued striding toward her office.

"Okay, so I made you miss dinner with your kid, you've already decided I'm an ass so I'm not sure why you're suddenly refusing to talk to me." He felt his lungs protest at the effort of keeping up.

"I'm not refusing to speak to you; I'm just not in the mood to listen to your sarcastic barbs after everything I say."

"You're a killjoy you know that Cuddy." He pulled a face, narrowly missing being hit by the glass door to Cuddy's office.

"But why give up something you're good at?" Her dry answer was the response he had been waiting for. She sat down and did her best to appear to be reading over charts while House's eyes stared into her.

"Well, aren't you going to play proud Mommy and brag about all your spawn's accomplishments?" When Cuddy didn't reply, House hobbled to her cabinets on the far left side of the office. Pulling open one of the doors he extracted two glasses and a bottle of Tequila, sliding the latter under his arm.

"I always did picture you as a Tequila kinda girl." He hobbled back to the desk and sat.

"How did you know I kept that in there?" She indicated the cabinet.

"The question you should be asking is why if I knew it was in there haven't I drunk it yet?" He unfastened the top of the bottle, pouring a generous amount in both glasses.

"What are you doing?" Cuddy rested her forearms on the table wearily.

"Loosening your tongue. I want to know about this mystery daughter and I'm not above getting you drunk to find out." He thought a moment before continuing. "Now that I think about it, getting you drunk would be delightful on its own."

"If we're going to talk about Jordan, I'm going to need that drink." House passed her the glass, lifting his own and taking a large gulp with her.

Feeling the blazing fire trail down her throat and settle in the pit of her stomach, Cuddy sighed, slamming her glass back on her desk. "What do you want to know?" She massaged her temple at the ensuing conversation.

"Where did she come from?" He asked, catching the look she threw him he interjected to clarify. "And I don't want a lesson in wee wees and hoo hoos." House pointed at her with his glass. "You know what I mean. I've known you even longer than I've known Wilson and this is the first I've heard of her."

Cuddy figured she had to be imagining the hurt in House's voice. "You left for med school, my life went on."

"Well don't tease me, tell me about her." Cuddy fixed him with a look of disbelief. "I want to know honest." He said innocently.

"I'm not sure what I can tell you; I've only spoken to her three times in the past year and that includes arranging dinner on Friday." Realizing House hadn't made a snippy remark she continued. "She began her first year at Stanford Medical School in September, I don't know what she's thinking of specializing in or even if she's thought about. She's stubborn, driven and far too smart for her own good."

"Surprise, surprise." House rolled his eyes at the similarities in mother and daughter. "So you haven't spoken to her in a year. Why? Not interested or did she get pissed at you always being a killjoy?"

"To hear Jordan tell it, I haven't been interested enough in her life. So she effectively cut me out of it." Cuddy closed her eyes against the increasing thud beating behind them, remembering the multitude of blowouts she and Jordan had shared when she was younger.

"I'm shock at you Cuddy, letting her get away with that while you pay for her to go through school." House shook his head in mock disapproval.

Cuddy let out a tortured laugh. "She wouldn't take a cent from me when she went to school. She received a scholarship from Stanford. She couldn't wait to get an entire country away from me."

"So she's a smarty pants." House poured them each another shot of Tequila.

"Yes but she only ever did enough to get by; the scholarship was for field lacrosse and she almost didn't hold onto that because of her marks."

"Lacrosse, I'm impressed. I was wondering what sport that cute little uniform belonged to." House went to take a sip of the drink but thought better of, realizing one of them should stay sober and with the Cuddy pounding the drinks like she was he would have to be the one.

"You know she skipped a grade in elementary school." Cuddy leaned back with her glass still clasped tightly in her fist. "By the time she got to ninth grade she wouldn't open a book, at least not one from school. My God she was a pain in the ass. She went from being my sweet little girl to this indignant, determined force set to derail any parenting on my part at every turn." She met his eyes. "Why are you listening to this?"

"I'm always curious about my patients it's just that they're generally lying to me so I lose interest. The truth is much more interesting than fiction."

"How do you know I'm not lying?" Cuddy polished off the glass of Tequila, feeling the alcohol taking hold of her faculties; she couldn't drink like she used to.

"That's what the Tequila's for." He filled her glass once more.

"No, this is more than your insatiable curiosity." She wagged her finger at him, wobbling slightly when she leaned forward in the chair.

"I got a peek at young Jordan's medical history when the donkeys out in California got off their surfboards long enough to fax it over."

"And?" She prompted.

"You don't do obtuse well Lisa."

She chewed the inside of her cheek. "You saw her date of birth and now that little hamster is spinning on its wheel inside your head."

"Hammie has been interested in that tidbit of information."

House played along. He was torn between wanting to have the answer to his question and keeping it an ignorant unknown. The latter was the easiest to deal with but not nearly as interesting.

"Come on Greg, there's nothing complicated about that math. Count backwards nine months from December 14th and what do you have?" Her sad eyes stared into the liquid filling the bottom of her glass.

"A daughter." His seriousness was enough to drag her head up.

"If I remember correctly you aced the math component on the MCATs." She nodded before laying her head against the back of her chair and closing her eyes. Her limbs loosened, relaxing into the chair as the tension of the day was diluted by the alcohol.

"Apparently I could have done a little better in anatomy considering I've been walking around for the last twenty years not knowing I was a daddy." He shrugged when Cuddy didn't remove her head from the back of her chair or open her eyes. "I should thank you." That got him eye contact. "You gave me the perfect excuse as to why I've missed every birthday and Christmas."

"You could have missed them all knowingly and she'd probably still like you more than me." She stood shakily from her seat, stumbling to her coat and purse.

"Where are you going?" House turned in his seat to watch her.

"Home." Tugging on her coat from multiple angles, she tried to pull the garment on. "That's if I can remember where it is." She mumbled lowly.

"You can't leave after dropping that bomb on me." He rolled his eyes at her lack of coordination.

"Oh bite me. You'd already figured it out, you just wanted to draw it out to make me squirm." She finally got fed up with her coat, watching it fall to the floor, kicking it to the side and grabbing only her purse instead.

"Maybe but you should still be riddled with guilt over withholding it from me." His brow furrowed. "Shouldn't you?"

"No, yes, maybe." She shook her head. "I don't know. I fully expect you to be pissed and act like a complete jack ass toward me but that wouldn't be anything unusual." Cuddy spun on her heel, striding determinedly out the door.

House jumped from the chair, forgetting about the pain in his leg when the loud bang resounding in the room, followed by a thump. Apparently in Cuddy's rush to leave the room she had neglected to open the glass door, her head and her ass now paid the price.

"I wanted you to feel guilty, not masochistic." He limped to her fallen form, extending a hand to lift her from the ground.

"The Tequila was your idea." She took his hand to stand, holding her other one to her aching head.

"Polishing off more than half the bottle was a product of your genius." He took her arm despite her protest, guiding her to the elevator.

"Aww." She smiled sweetly up at him. "You think I'm a genius."

"That was never in question; the use of said genius is." He pressed the button to take them to the parking garage. "But you have kept me around so you must be using some measure of it."

Cuddy rolled her eyes at his ego and grabbed her head suddenly. The movement drew a moan from her lips; she had to lean against the elevator wall to get her bearings so she would be able to walk out of the building under her own power.

"Anything else I should know about Jordan?" House followed Cuddy, who refused help walking to her car.

"As her father or her doctor?" She blindly searched for her keys in her purse.

"Either one I suppose, although I'm no longer technically her doctor." Cuddy thrust her wallet, hand sanitizer and lipstick into House's empty hand, trying to get a better look inside the deep pocket of her purse. "What's her favorite food? Does she like animals or did she pull the wings off flies as a child? Can she party with the same flare you could at Yale?"

With her head down, House couldn't see the momentary flicker of hurt flash through Cuddy's blue orbs. "I not sure what her favorite food is, I think she likes animals and with both of us as her parents I can only assume she like a good party."

Finally finding her keys, Cuddy took back the items she had passed to House. She made numerous attempts at getting the key in the lock with no luck. She seemed to have forgotten that her Lexus at an unlock button on the key chain

"Woah there Tequila veins, you aren't driving yourself anywhere tonight." He took the keys from her drunken grips.

"Oh hell, you pick now to be Mr. Responsible. Where is this House during your duty hours?" She whined.

"If you show up drunk to work maybe you'll see him." House smirked. "Come on." He pulled gently on her arm to the other side of the car. "I'll drive you home."

"There's no way I'm letting you drive my Lexus." Cuddy protested.

"Okay. You can sleep in your car then." He stated simply.

Cuddy appeared to be contemplating the idea before sighing. "Fine, but stay within the speed limit."

"Nuts. I was hoping to test out my chances at driving NASCAR. You're just trying to make sure I don't start a new career. Then who would you have to verbally abuse."

"You've figured out my master plan." She rolled her neck around until her eyes were directed at House's.

"Get in the car. If you want to be back to see Jordan tomorrow you'll have want to start sleeping this off." He hit the button on the keychain.

"What's the point? It's not like she'll notice I'm there." Cuddy sucked in a deep breath. "I saw her films Greg; there's a good chance she won't wake up." House shifted uncomfortably, as Cuddy's eyes grew suspiciously wet. "She's right you know, I was so concern about my career that I didn't make time for her. I couldn't even find the time to see her play this weekend and she was five minutes from here!" The tears slipped over the edge of her lashes and trailed over her silky skin to catch on her chin.

"You're crying." House mumbled. "This is going to be a long night." He looked sky-word. "There is also a good chance she will wake up and the damage won't be a bad as we think it is." He countered. "Hey Lisa, your daughter….our daughter." He corrected himself. "Is at Stanford Med. She's an All American Lacrosse player and based on the posse that was at the hospital earlier, she's liked by her teammates. She also happens to be gorgeous. With the exception of her stunning looks, I didn't have anything to do with any of it. You obviously did an amazing job raising her whether you know it or not."

Cuddy's tears continued to fall despite the warmth flooding her alcohol rich blood. She had always been an emotional drunk but usually it meant she was happy, not sobbing into the shirt of Greg House. "You're such a bullshiter." She accused with a small smile forming. "Thank you. I needed that bit of BS." She wound her arms around his rather motionless form to hug him in thanks. His own arms lifted to encompass her tiny body against him. "Now take me home."

After exiting the parking garage Cuddy took stoke of House from her position in the passenger seat. With his attention on the road she didn't have to avoid his piercing gaze. "It hasn't actually set in that Jordan is your daughter has it?" She questioned.

"Nope." He replied quickly. "It's much easier to avoid with her currently unconscious." He shrugged, hoping that comment didn't sound as insensitive to her as it did to him.

"We'll have to have a meeting with her coach before they fly back to California." Cuddy leaned her head against the window, feeling a wave of fatigue wash over her.

"The season isn't until the spring." House stated.

"Yeah. They were at Princeton for exhibition matches with a few other east coast schools. The coach will have to be made aware of the full extent of her condition; they'll be short their captain. I want Foreman in that meeting with us." Her voice grew softer and her words slurred together in the early stages of sleep. "Call Dean Medicine at Stan…" Her speech dropped off into the sound of even breathing.

House knew that in the light of day he would have to face the fact that he now had a daughter who was fighting for her life because one of his doctors had screwed up. He allowed a tiny smile to pass his lips realizing that work at the university hospital was about to get far more interesting.

**TBC**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN:** Ummmm... I'm not really sure if anyone's still interested in this story because I only had two reviews. Oh well, let me know if you want me to bother continuing.

**Chapter 6**

"Alright Tequila Momma, you're home." House turned off the car in the swanky Jersey neighborhood Cuddy called home. The large bungalow was far too big for one person but Cuddy didn't seem to want to give up the illusion of power and wealth the structure provided. "Come on Cuddy, time to get up." He grabbed his cane from the back seat so he could move around to the other side of the car to open Cuddy's door.

With the release of the door her head tipped forward, eliciting a moan from her otherwise quiet form. He leaned across to unbuckle her seatbelt and levered her out of her seat one-handed.

"You're not making this easy on me Lisa. I'm not going to be able to carry you; I've only got one leg." His statement of the obvious was for his benefit only as Cuddy was completely oblivious. He got her to her feet; however, her eyes were having difficulty staying open.

"Even with two good legs, too scrawny to carry me." She slurred disconnectedly.

House received the message no matter how disjointed and was surprised at her ability to spar even when intoxicated. "Scrawny! I'm not scrawny." He shot back indignantly. Steadying himself on both legs and cane, he reached around with his free arm hoisting her from the ground over his shoulder in a fireman carry.

"Oh!" Cuddy cried as her abdomen sunk into House's shoulder. "If you drop me I'm firing you." She mumbled still only half aware of her surroundings.

House made it to the front door, unlocking it with the keys he had in his hand from driving. But when he opened the large solid wood door he was met by an annoying beeping coming from the right hand wall.

"Okay Dr. Paranoid, you better be coherent or we're going to have the Popo on our asses any minute." He turned to the alarm panel.

"Not paranoid. Woman living alone. Dangerous." She grunted disjointedly. "Jordan's birthday." She groaned, her stomach protesting to having been jostled.

"Real original." A green light appeared after the beeping ceased following the four numbers House punched into the panel. "I know I make this look easy, but you're heavy; think you could walk?"

"But the view from here is so wonderful." She patted his ass lightly, still half asleep.

"You stare at my ass all day and it's not enough for you?" He proceeded into the living room, depositing her on the large down couch.

Cuddy reached blindly for his arm as he went to move away. "Thanks for bringing me home. I'm so messed up right now." She ran a hand over her face to wipe away some of the fatigue she was feeling.

"I finally have something to hold over your head; there's no way I'm letting you kill yourself now." He sat down on the edge of the table in front of the sofa. "I see the end of clinic hours in sight." He smirked.

"Not going to happen." She kicked off her heels. "My punishment for not telling you about Jordan was having to raise her on my own." The irony in her voice made him chuckle.

"How did you manage to raise her alone? She was born after the first semester of your senior year."

"The summer before she was born I took a few extra classes. I graduated after that first semester then had the rest of the year before med school started. My parents helped out while I was still in school."

"So that answers why you ended up at Columbia instead of UCLA for med school. Parents just wouldn't let you get too far from Connecticut eh?"

She laughed cynically. "They had the noose good and tight by that point."

"They must just love me." He raised his eyebrows.

"My father loved you until of course you got his little girl pregnant. As for my mother, well she was your greatest defender. She felt you couldn't be blamed for anything because you had no idea I was having Jordan."

"Ah your mother, I could always count on her." His eyes rotated ceiling-ward.

"They were pretty great about everything." She sighed. "I have to call them tomorrow, let them know what happened."

"It's late, you should get to sleep." House told her gently, wanting to avoid anymore conversation about Jordan.

"Yeah." Sitting up on the couch, Cuddy straightened out her hair. "You can have the spare bedroom tonight. It'll save you taking a cab back to the hospital to get your car." Time had given her some semblance of lucidity that the alcohol of earlier in the night had stripped her of.

"Maybe I should sleep in your room, just in case you choke on your own vomit in the middle of the night." He said slyly.

"I'll sleep on my stomach. But thanks for the offer." She rolled her eyes but managed to soften the sarcastic edge of her words with a smile, patting his chest on her way down the hallway.

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

**Day 1 of Coma**

"How is she?" Chase glanced up from the files on the table when Foreman entered the break room.

"No change since last night. She has some reactivity to pain stimuli although it's a little weak on the right side." He poured a cup of coffee. "What did you find out about her shoulder?"

"Separation of the acromioclavicular joint and corcoclavicular. It's mild but is still going to need rehabilitation. Not that it's going to matter if she doesn't wake up." Chase flipped the file closed and leaned back in his chair with a sigh. "Pretty crappy way to learn Cuddy has a daughter."

"Yeah." Foreman took a sip of his coffee. "Did you see House's face; he seemed actually surprise when Jordan introduced herself. I always thought he and Cuddy had known each other for years. I mean she was his doctor." Foreman sat down, not used to engaging in gossip but feeling truly stumped since the day before.

"Knowing House, Cuddy's been telling him about her daughter for years and he just never bothered to pay attention." Chase joked.

"I resent that comment." House limped into the room, making as much noise dropping his bag and coat as he could. "It's not that I don't pay attention, it's that I don't care." Chase rolled his eyes. "And for the record, I learned of the Cuddy progeny the same time the rest of you nattering fools did."

"Is Dr. Cuddy alright?" Foreman asked around his mug.

"How the hell should I know?" House poured himself a coffee, using it to chase the pills he tossed in his mouth.

"So that wasn't you going into Cuddy's office last night?" Foreman eye the other man.

"What, do you want to go steady with Cuddy or do you get your thrills from stalking her?" House spun to look at Foreman. "Or is it me that you're stalking. I'm flattered really but you see you have something that I don't really appreciate in my significant others: a penis."

"Her daughter is critically injured. If she does wake up she may never be the same again." Chase argued.

'Where's Cameron?" House glanced around the room to make sure he hadn't simply missed noticing her.

"Probably cowering in a supply closet somewhere." Chase smiled.

"Oh Chase you made a funny." Thinking Chase was looking too pleased with himself, House decided to tear him down a bit. "I give you points for the attempt but that's about all."

"Speaking of Cameron." Foreman nodded to the glass door where Cameron was moving toward.

"You're late." House raised an eyebrow at her.

"I had a late night." She smirked.

"Consulting your attorney?" He unzipped his bag.

"Very funny." Cameron said dryly. "I had a date." She watched House carefully for any signs of jealousy.

House held a hand to his chest dramatically. "Oh my, was he cute? Did he take you somewhere nice? Did he open the doors for you? Tell me all about it girlfriend."

"There's no need to be rude because you sat at home alone last night." She countered.

"Is there any case that will pique my interest?" House turned away from Cameron for fear of revealing information he would rather she not have.

"Thirty-two year old female presenting with nausea, vomiting and mild respiratory difficulties." Chase announced to the group.

"And?" House prompted.

"Blood and urine analysis are clear. Chest x-rays show accumulating fluid but there is not cause that we can find. And before Cameron asks, the test was negative for TB." He looked at her pointedly.

"Two jokes at Cameron's expense in under two minutes. Chase I'm impressed." House beamed. "Get another x-ray, ultra sound the chest and stomach, ECG, another blood sample and lumbar puncture just for good measure."

"Nothing indicates it could be CNS related, why put the patient through that?" Foreman frowned.

"We always end up doing one; I just figured we might as well do it now and get it out of the way." House shrugged as though it was the most logical of suggestions. "Now be gone with you, I have important things to do." He pulled out his brand new PSP and held it up with a flare.

"Hey House?" Cameron called from the door. "Did Dr. Cuddy say anything about yesterday?" She fidgeted with her pen.

"Oh you mean about how you almost killed her kid?" House asked innocently. "Why? Are you afraid of the Boss Lady?" He taunted.

"No, I just-" she glanced down at her twitching hands.

House rolled his eyes with a sigh. "For some reason Cuddy thinks you're a good doctor so I doubt you have a law suit to worry about. Anyway, if one of her doctor's got sued it would mean more work for her. But I wouldn't go asking for any favors any time soon." House cursed his job, hating the thankless effort of having to give over-eager know-it-alls pep talks.

"Thanks." Cameron gave him a stunning smile before walking out the door.

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

"You didn't wake me."

House glanced from his game to find an irritated Lisa Cuddy standing at his office door. She was standing tall in her designer pointed toe boots, a tight fitting pair of dress pants and a light blue shirt, strategically unbuttoned to leave the men of the hospital enamored with the view of her cleavage.

"If I had known you were going to wear that shirt today I wouldn't have made such an obvious mistake." He whistled lowly.

"I have things to do today and you let me sleep until nine." She moved further into the room to stand at his desk.

"I figured you needed the time to sleep off all that Tequila you down last night." He turned off his game, depositing it on the table.

"That's what coffee's for." She leaned on her arms against the desk

"Drinking coffee doesn't sober you up; it just makes you a jittery drunk." He shot back.

"Have you seen her?" Cuddy questioned suddenly. There was no uncertainty regarding whom she was speaking of.

"No." The simple answer sounded much harsher once it came out of his mouth than he had thought it would. "I wasn't sure…" He trailed off.

"I'm not going to stop you from seeing her Greg. That was never my intent. What ever relationship you are going to have with Jordan will between you and her."

"How does that affect us?" He stood from behind his desk, using it as support to stand beside Cuddy.

"I'm not sure I know what you're talking about." She frowned at him.

"We went out on Saturday night and I don't know about you but I didn't have a horrible time." That was as much as an admittance of fun as any for House. "I was hoping to go out again and find out if it was a fluke or not." He tried to be as nonchalant as possible.

"Oh Greg you romantic you." Cuddy uttered with dry humor.

"It's my natural charm." He slid his long fingers between the edge of the desk and Cuddy's hip. He found the hem of the shirt, making small circles on the small patch of skin he could reach.

"I have to go check on Jordan." She made no effort to move away from his gentle touch. "If I manage to avoid personnel situations here, we should be able to test that fluke theory later this week." Her own hand caressed the inside of his wrist.

"So what you're telling me is: stay out of trouble or you'll be too busy to have dinner with me." House glanced down her shirt surreptitious.

"You do catch on quick." Cuddy joked. "And stop looking down my blouse." She scolded.

"It's not my fault you put them out there right in front of me." He defended himself with an evil glint in his eye.

"Would you like to come with me?" Cuddy indicated the door that would lead them down the corridor to Jordan's hospital room.

House immediately appeared uncomfortable, retracting his hand from her waist. "I have a patient." He avoided her gaze.

Cuddy waited until he finally met her eyes again to squeeze his wrist and dip her head marginally. "Okay." She told him, alluding to her understanding of his avoidance. "And thanks for yesterday." She left the office before House could follow through on his impulse to kiss her.

**TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN:** Thank you to everyone who replied to the last chapter. I'm so glad that people are still reading this, definitely gives me motivation to write. Sorry this took so long, my dog passed away last week and I miss her a lot. I know it likely sounds stupid but she was part of the family. Thanks again and I hope you like this next installemt.

**Chapter 7**

Her heels clicked a staccato of determination against the tiled hospital hallways. The sound was heightened in the quiet wing she was walking through but did little to distract her from the foreboding sense consuming her very soul. With every step her stomach turned over sending a rolling sense of nausea halfway up her esophagus.

Heel. Toe. Churn.

Heel. Toe. Churn.

Heel. Toe. Churn.

Above her head a florescent light hummed, flickering in an effort to stay lit against an unknown force playing within the bulb. She made a quick note to mention electrical repairs to the maintenance crews later in the day.

The smooth material of her silk lined skirt glided along the outside of her thighs, soothing the tighten muscles beneath. Standing outside her destination she turned, glancing down the path she had just walked, surprised her legs had carried her so quickly. She fidgeted with the hem on her shirt, realizing she was due for a manicure whenever her schedule would permit it.

A short shake of her head got rid of the rather peculiar thought before stepping through the doorway into Jordan's hospital room. Her heart skipped a beat even before her eyes could focus on the bed to find it empty.

Spinning gracefully on the toe of her expensive shoes, she stalked to the nurse's station. Three of the nurses on call glanced up from their various charts to find a very serious Dean of Medicine headed for them.

"Where is the patient in room 424?" The aggression in her voice was not mistaken by anyone.

"Dr. Cuddy, um didn't you hear?" They each shared a look of terror, knowing the station desk wouldn't protect them from Cuddy if she chose to take her frustration out on them.

"Hear what?" Her eyes widened.

"The patient was in distress. They took her back to surgery."

"What kind of distress?" Cuddy felt her stomach revolting against her once more.

"She had some additional intracranial bleeding post-op this morning. Dr. Howard took her back in to relieve the pressure." None of the nurses moved, not wanting to wake Cuddy from the stupor she had fallen into with that piece of information.

"How long ago did they take her?" She swallowed forcefully, her throat constricting against the surge of impeding tears.

"A few hours." The nurses knew that the longer the surgery, the less favorable the outcome would be for that particular procedure. "I have her chart here, if you'd like to see it."

Cuddy nodded her head, worried that any attempt at speaking would manifest itself as a sob. The chart was placed in her outstretched hand, the sympathetic gazes of all three nurses following her as she made her way back into the room Jordan had occupied that morning.

It took an almost superhuman effort to focus her concentration on the words on the treatment chart and understand what they were illustrating. The occasional medical term jumped off the page giving her a surge of hope or crushing blow. Nothing about the damage Jordan had sustained was textbook and it appeared as though she was in for a long recovery if she managed to make it through the following few days.

Down the hall a grumbling drew closer, the unmistakable sound of a hospital bed being rolled across the smooth surface. Cuddy stood from her seat on the window bench to see her daughter being wheeled into small room, a fresh white bandage covering the side of her head.

"Dr. Cuddy." One of the orderlies looked up in surprise to find the Dean waiting in the room.

Cuddy almost smiled, realizing that for once the hospital gossip hadn't completed its rounds yet.

"Are those her operative charts?" She motioned to the end of the bed.

"Yeah. Dr. Howard seemed optimistic." The orderly speaking to her had been with the hospital for a few years. He locked the bed into place and prepared it for the nurses before taking his leave.

"Dr. Cuddy, I wasn't expecting you here." Dr. Howard entered the room with his head in a file.

"What happened? She was stable yesterday night." Cuddy was on him with questions immediately.

"She had a secondary hemorrhage site; we had to go back in and drain the bleeding." He made a notation in the file he carried. "Her vitals have remained strong but the amount of neurological damage she has sustained can't be determined until she wakes up."

"And based on the physical damage and her vitals are you confident she will wake up?" Cuddy's jaw clenched, her teeth grinding against one another.

Dr. Howard shook his head in dismay. "I wish I could say I was but it's not possible. You know as well as anyone that the brain is still very much a mystery." He shrugged at the frustration he felt at not being able to heal his patient.

"What kind of recovery time-frame are we looking at?" Cuddy moved to stand over the bed.

"I would expect her to wake up between eight and fourteen days as for recovery beyond that…. I can't give you any definite numbers but if there is a chance for rehabilitation it could take a minimum of a year." Dr. Howard stuffed his pen back in his coat pocket. "I'm on call the rest on the week; the nursing staff knows to call me if there's any change." He found himself in a precarious position, speaking to not only the mother of his patient but also his boss and a fellow physician.

"Thank you Roy. I appreciate all you've done for her." Cuddy reached down for her daughter's delicate hand.

Cuddy sat on the side of the bed once Dr. Howard had left the room; taking careful note of the bruised skin surrounding the IV line in Jordan's hand. Her wavy dark hair was a wild mass atop her head, creating a distinct contrast against her pale complexion. Cuddy couldn't remember the last time she had seen her daughter's skin without the requisite tan the southern sun dusted over her cheeks.

"Hey Baby girl, you have to get better." She brushed the back of her hand over the young girl's cheek. "You know I've been thinking about the last time we saw each other, at your grandparent's last year. When I saw you at the house in Florida I couldn't believe how beautiful and poised you had become in the short time away from me." The smile that had worked its way onto her face suddenly vanished.

"But I guess the time away from me wasn't so short after all. You were right when you said that I spent more time worrying about the hospital and my patients than I ever spent worrying over you. I knew it when you said it; I was just too proud to admit it. But I want you to know that none of that ever meant as much to me as you do." Tears pooled around the blue of Cuddy's eyes, dropping to hug her bottom eyelids with morose affection.

**_(Flashback)_**

_Naples, Florida – Last December_

"Lisa honey, you came." Lisa was met at the door to her parent's estate by her elegantly dressed mother. Even at seven in the morning the woman was able to look as though she had spent the morning at a spa.

"Hi Mom." She leaned in for a hug. "Of course I'm here. It's Dad's birthday."

"Oh Honey you looked wrecked; those redeye flights are just the worst." Catherine Cuddy cast a disapproving eye over her daughter's yoga pants, top and hooded sweatshirt. She had neglected to remove her sunglasses to hide the dark circles her mother would no doubt comment on.

The eldest Cuddy woman stood two inches taller than her daughter, her dark curly hair, coiffed to perfection and lightened by the Floridian sun. Her fine features and dark complexion had aged gently giving onlookers a taste of the regal ness Lisa would maintain as she got older. The only dissimilar feature was the bright green eyes set deeply under her mother's brow, contrasting the pure blue of her daughter's.

"Thanks Mom. I always love hearing how awful I look." She rolled her eyes beneath the dark glasses.

"Oh Lisa you know what I meant." She chide gently. "Why don't you head up stairs and take a nap, we have plenty of time before the party this evening."

"That sounds really great actually but I think I'll take my nap by the pool." Lisa picked up her bag to take to her room and change.

"That's wonderful Honey. Jordan should be here by noon; I'll send her out once she arrives." Catherine smiled, pleased to see her youngest child again.

"I have no objections although I'm sure Jordan will." Lisa sighed.

"Are you two still fighting?" Catherine followed her daughter up the wide staircase.

"Fighting would imply that she speaks to me which is just often enough for me to know that she's still alive." Lisa dropped her bags in the third room from the stairs that had been designated as hers when her parent's had first bought their winter house.

"I'll have to speak to her. That is no way to treat one's mother and no granddaughter of mine will act in such a manner." Catherine wandered the bedroom, double checking that the cleaning staff had set up the room for guests.

"It's alright Mom. I don't blame her for lashing out; she's right. I haven't been around much in the past few years. I may have thought it was enough for her but it doesn't matter so much what I think, it's Jordan's perception that matters and she believes I've slighted her. And maybe I have." Lisa pulled her bikini from her bag, finally surrendering to the shade of the bedroom and removing her sunglasses.

"That is no excuse. You have built a life for Jordan. Where did she think everything she had came from? Her lessons, clothes, sports? You may have had to sacrifice some time with her but you always had her best interests at heart Lisa."

"Where is this coming from Mom?" Lisa stood shocked in the middle of the bedroom. "You were furious when I took Jordan and moved out of the house to live on my own. You fought me at every turn."

"I know and at the time I thought I was doing the right thing. It's a mother's job to protect their child and although I knew how strong and bright you are, I was terrified that if you get into trouble and there would be no one there to help you and my grandbaby."

"Mom, I spent all of my schooling at home after Jordan arrived and I couldn't have done it without knowing that you were there to help me with my daughter but I realized that I had to get out of that house and try to make it on my own. And the only reason I was so confident was that I knew if I hit a road block I could call on you and Dad." She smiled at her mother.

"Oh Honey, your father and I will always be here for you, no matter how old you get." Catherine once more embraced her daughter. "Now go enjoy the sun; I'm sure this is the only holiday you're giving yourself this year and once all the relatives arrive the holiday ends." Her mother smirked at her.

Lisa wrapped a sarong around her waist a headed down the stairs. She heard the front door open and heavy footsteps shuffling across the marble floor. A genuine smile slid over her lips as she finished descending the stairs.

"Where have you been?" She asked from the landing.

An older gentleman spun around, startled at being addressed. "Lisa!" He cheered. "I didn't realize you were getting in so early." He hugged his daughter tightly.

The tall man had obviously not passed on his height gene to his youngest. But the startlingly blue eyes smiling with happiness seemed to have made the transition.

"Golf this early Daddy?" Lisa drew back to look at his clothing. No matter how many years passed she still felt like a child in her father's presence.

"Only nine holes and if I had known you were coming in I would have skipped it." He kissed her cheek.

"You lie." She smirked. "You would have postponed until you could drag me with you." She picked up the sunscreen that had been left at the bottom of the stairs by her mother to take out back to the pool.

"This is why I love my birthday." He grinned. "In a few hours all my children and grandchildren will be together in this house. It's exactly what an old man needs."

"Well old man, you better go catch a nap because it's bound to be a long night." Lisa kissed his cheek on her way out of the house.

Lisa adjusted her Chanel sunglasses on her nose, carefully not to splash the water around her. The lounger she floated on was precarious enough to toss her into the crystal clean pool beneath her if she shifted too far to either side. She closed her eyes against the harsh sun, relaxing for the first time in well over a year.

Behind her, there was a tell tale swoosh as someone dove cleanly into the still surface. Dropping her left leg to the side, she used it to maneuver herself into a position to see who her company was.

The form made its way to become level with the water and Lisa immediately recognized who had joined her. Without a break in motion, Jordan cut through the liquid with a crisp and certain determination born of a natural athlete. On her tenth pass in the long pool she disappeared deep into its depths.

Lisa glanced over the left edge of the lounger, wondering where Jordan had ventured to. It took only one second to realize what was happening before she met the cool water she had been resting over. By the time she reemerged sputtering Jordan had made herself comfortable on the lounger.

"Thanks." Jordan smiled brightly in her direction.

"Very mature." Lisa wiped the water from her eyes beneath the sunglasses, thankful she had tied her hair back before going outside.

"Maturity is highly over rated." She winked. "And I was tired."

"I thought you weren't getting in until the afternoon." Lisa treaded water beside the lounger.

"It's almost one." Jordan looked at her pointedly. "I hope you're not wearing red tonight because it's liable to clash with your skin." She laughed at her mother's horrified look. "Don't worry, it's not too bad."

"You look tired." Lisa unintentionally echoed her mother's sentiment's of that morning.

"Christmas finals and training has been hard this season. These marks actually count if I'm going to make it into medical school. I don't remember ever working so hard in my life." She shrugged.

"How is school going?" Lisa held onto the edge of the lounger to keep herself up, while navigating the rocky territory of the conversation.

"Okay. Although I could be standing on my roof after Christmas debating the merits of jumping off depending on the results of finals." She laughed when her mother shook her head. "Training's been tough. I tore my hamstring the two months ago and it's been slow getting my strength back."

"Do the doctors think you'll be ready for the coming season?" Lisa could feel the sun heating her skin but was reluctant to leave one of the longest conversations she and Jordan had shared in two years.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." They were silent for a while and Lisa thought that the spell had been broken. "Are you staying for Christmas?" Jordan asked finally.

Lisa sighed, pleased that Jordan was still engaged in the conversation but knew that she would withdraw with her answer. "No, I have to get back to the hospital."

She could see Jordan closing herself off. "You don't have anyone else in Jersey who could take over while you're away. I know I joke about the incompetence of Princeton grads but surely not everyone there is a moron."

"There are a few doctors that need special supervision and unfortunately I'm the only one willing to deal with them. Part of the burden of being the Dean." She held her breath, wondering if Jordan would even give her a response.

The young girl laughed cynically. "You haven't taken more than one day off at a time for the last ten years." She turned her piercing blue eyes on her mother. "And I know you love it so don't try to deny it."

"You're right. I do love it. I would have walked away a long time ago if I didn't." Lisa felt the chill encompassing her daughter as they continued to talk.

"I know. You've always been very clear about the things of importance in your life. You spent the majority of my childhood devoted to your patients and becoming the best doctor on the east coast." Jordan felt the immediate recoil of her mother.

"So you keep telling me." Lisa bit the inside of her mouth to keep from saying anything more. "Are we going to make this one of those visits or do you think we can get through the evening and remain civil enough for your grandfather's sake?"

"I can do civil. It's mature I have difficulty with." Jordan smirked at her mother's smile, pleased with her ability to relieve the tension.

"Well looky what we have here." A booming voice startled the occupants of the pool.

Lisa rolled her eyes beneath her sunglasses, feeling the irritation creeping over her. "Hello Michael." She groaned quietly.

"Hello Little Sis." Michael smiled. "And if it isn't the prodigal granddaughter, returned from her self-imposed exile in California." He winked at Jordan. "How you doing Jordie?"

"Fine. And I'd be better if you would refrain from calling me that." She answered. "How have you been Uncle Mike?"

"Great." He turned to his sister. "You know Cheryl is pregnant again." He was far too pleased with himself for Lisa's liking.

"Congratulations. The world could use a few more of your spawn." She teased. "Speaking of spawn, where are the hellions?" She looked beyond him, expecting the wild children to fly out of the house at any second.

"Inside with their grandmother. But don't worry; I know they'll want to spend plenty of time with their Aunty Lisa and big cousin Jordan."

"Can't wait." They both stated simultaneously.

**_(End Flashback)_**

"You looked stunning that evening. You'll never know how many people told me how polite and bright they thought you were or how proud I was of you. I just wish I could have had more to do with your wonderful attributes than I have." Cuddy allowed the tears to overwhelm her, thinking of all the time lost. Feeling the pain of not being available to her daughter all the times she needed her including most recently grip her heart in a vice so tight she thought she may suffocate.

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"Where the hell is Foreman?" House looked around for other doctor on his staff.

"He got a page. Ran off somewhere." Chase answered.

"So, did anything come up on the tests of our most recent enigma?" He popped a pill and made a grab for the water on his desk.

"Everything is clear. The fluid in her lungs isn't infected although she does have an abnormally high white cell count." Cameron responded.

"Cancer?" House asked them with raised eyebrows.

"Not likely but we could schedule an MRI just to be sure."

"Yeah let's be sure shall we. Wouldn't want to torture the patient unnecessarily." His lack of care was palpable.

Foreman walked into House's office, adjusting his lab coat in the process. House dropped his cane to the floor, moving his legs off the top of his desk in order to stand.

"Well, well, well….the third stooge. You know curly, it's just not the same without you." He frowned. "Who did you pay to send you that page? And do they take personal cheques?"

"Not that I need to explain myself but Dr. Howard paged me. Jordan Cuddy had additional bleeding; he took her back to surgery." He sighed.

House gripped his cane tighter, without much acknowledgment of the sudden rush of worry Foreman's explanation had stirred in him. "Is she okay?" His genuine question drew incredulous eyes from all three young doctors.

"For now. But if the intracranial bleeding continues she won't be." House began hobbling to the door. "Where are you going?" One of the ducklings called after him.

He turned his head and kept moving. "I have to go see a woman about a date."

"What about our patient?" Cameron asked after him.

"She has respiratory problems. If you don't know how to treat that, then you three shouldn't have graduated medical school."

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House arrived on the forth floor before his brain could catch up with her legs. After seeing Cuddy's state of distress the night before, he was worried what impact a set back in Jordan's health would have on her. The door to room 424 was ajar, giving House a sliver of view into the room but without the line of sight to see Cuddy or the patient.

Using his cane, he opened the door wide enough to move through it but made note to close it behind him. He was sure that Cuddy would not want her staff to find her in tears sitting beside a patient, no matter how justified the reaction may have been. He had learned long ago how difficult it was for her to admit a fault, let alone demonstrate any measure of weakness.

"Hey." He called to get her attention. She turned her wet, red eyes in his direction. "Your mascara's running." He pointed with the hand that wasn't holding his cane.

"Thanks." She glanced away. "What are you doing here?" She asked lowly.

"I heard that she had a relapse. I wanted to come and check on her; Dr. Howard is saying that it's a miracle she made it through the second procedure. I'm wanting for miracles of late so I couldn't miss this one." He lowered himself into the chair on the opposite side of the bed from Cuddy.

"She's an amazing lacrosse player you know. Even better than you." She wiped the dark tears from her cheeks.

"For a girl." He snickered. "She looks just like you." He muttered thoughtfully.

"She has your eyes." Cuddy brushed a lock of Jordan's hair back from her face.

"Blood shot and slightly crazed?" He slid further into the chair.

"I was thinking more along the lines of big and blue." The tears continued to fall despite the smile that briefly lit her lips. "Since when do you go for the self-deprecating humor?

"Have to change it up. Wouldn't want anyone to think I'm boring like some doctors around here." He defended.

"I don't think you're in danger of that happening and I'll be sure not to tell Wilson you said that." She kept her gaze on Jordan, afraid the young girl would disappear if she took her eyes off her. "Are you planning on sitting there all day?" Cuddy was still caught up in taking a visual inventory of their daughter.

"I hate to miss clinic duty but I wouldn't want you to stay by yourself." His pathetic attempt at self-sacrifice earned him another smirk from Cuddy.

"Yeah, I'm sure." She didn't make a fuss about skipping clinic duty as she knew that sitting with her in the hospital room was just as un-stimulating for House as hours spent with countless runny noses.

"Tell me something about her." House spoke, chipping away at the wall of silence and history between them.

The two of them spent the better part of the day watching over their daughter in the safety of the hospital. Their haven and the only chance for their child. Cuddy relaxed on the bed while sharing stories of Jordan's childhood while House hung on every word, interjecting with a sarcastic comment now and then so that Cuddy knew he was still awake.

**TBC**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: **Thanks once more for the reviews everyone. I'm in the midst of finals so I'm trying to be a good student and study while still trying to write. I'm glad that so many of you have liked the story and characterization. I've only seen six episodes of House so I've been worried about whether I'm writing them both with accuracy.

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**Chapter 8**

"Can I help you with something?" Dr. Wilson approached a confused looking woman standing a few feet from the elevator.

"I hope so. I'm trying to find a patient. She was brought in yesterday." The woman's hair was pulled back in a relaxed fashion.

"Let's see what we can do." He smiled, heading to a computer hidden by a high station desk. "What's the patient's name?"

"Jordan Cuddy." She replied, laying her hands on the countertop.

Wilson's head rose in a measure of guarded surprise. "Cuddy." He wasn't sure whether he had made a statement or asked a question.

"Yes, Jordan Cuddy." She repeated, believing he hadn't heard her clearly the first time.

"Room 424." Wilson read the admitting page on the screen. "You know what, I'm headed that way; why don't I take you?" He nodded in the direction of the lifts.

"I'd appreciate that." She smiled at the friendly doctor.

Wilson smiled to himself, thinking that all the years of friendship with House were finally paying off. His good deed had an ulterior motive to rival any of his friend's. He was anxious to meet the new Cuddy half the hospital was talking about.

"So how do you know Jordan Cuddy?" Wilson fished for information as they road the elevator.

"I'm her lacrosse coach at Stanford." She watched nervously as the numbers on the elevator climbed each floor.

"She must be pretty good if you're this worried about her." He indicated the woman's hands twisting around one another.

"She is." Coach Myers smiled, separating her hands. "But it's not that simple. The girls are recruited from around the continent; I even have a couple from overseas. When they come to California they are leaving their families behind, many for the first time, I have to take on a role of coach, academic mentor and parent. I'm responsible for their safety and when one of my girls gets injured I end you worrying as all my titles." She shrugged.

"It sounds as though you've had this conversation before." Wilson raised an eyebrow.

"Too many times to count, with other player's parents, my husband and my own kids." She chuckled. "All part of the job." They were quiet throughout the rest of the ride.

When the doors opened to the forth floor Coach Myers glanced beside her. "So do you have a patient to see up here or are you just curious to meet the Dean of Medicine's daughter?" She smirked at Wilson's sheepish blush. "Does this hospital normally circulate gossip at such a speed?" She teased gently.

"No, usually it's much faster; it always takes a day or so after the weekend to pick up again." He joked. "Here you go." He pointed to the closed door.

"Would there be a reason for the door to be close? Would they be doing a procedure?" She hesitated, not wanting to intrude.

"The nurses usually close the curtain in that case. I'll go in ahead of you just in case." He slipped between her and the door.

"That's very kind of you." She smiled with a sarcastic edge. "And quite smooth."

Wilson knocked politely while opening the door. He took three steps into the room and was halted in his tracks. Dr. Cuddy was stretched out on the bed with her upper body propped up by the wall housing the numerous electrical outlets, cocooning the prone body lying on the bed. Although this was not a sight he was accustom to seeing on his daily rounds, it was not nearly as startling as seeing House slouched low in a chair beside the two women, looking not only comfortable sans sport coat but surprisingly engaged in whatever Cuddy had been telling him.

"Sorry to interrupt but your…" He felt weird saying the word daughter when speaking to Cuddy. "the patient has a visitor."

"Coach…" Cuddy drew out, the name having slipped her mind.

"Myers." She supplied, nodding to the other woman. "But please call me Jennifer." She moved around Wilson to see Jordan unmoving on the bed. "I apologize for just dropping in but we're heading back in two hours and I wanted to ensure Jordan was taken care of." Coach Myers wanted to kick herself for how insensitive that had come out.

"No, I should be the one apologizing. I meant to call you earlier but I've spent the day here." She motioned to the room. "I assume you need to have a release signed before you cross the country without one of your players." Cuddy's voice was huskier than normal from the hours she spent talking to House.

"How's she doing?" Coach Myers had avoided asking the question as long as she could.

"We had to take her back to surgery this morning; she had additional bleeding that needed to be drained before the pressure built. Now we have to wait." She sighed. "The medical school will have to be notified that she'll be out for the remainder of the semester and possibly next semester." Cuddy left out that it was possible Jordan would never return to medical school.

"I'll take care of that." Coach Myers offered. "I already have the numbers in Jordan's player file."

"Thank you." The relief flooded Cuddy's response. "I didn't ask you yesterday how this happened." She could see Coach Myers becoming uncomfortable.

"One of the girls on the team we were playing took a swipe at Jordan's stick but missed and hit her in the head. She fell on her shoulder and didn't mention her head until we noticed it was bleeding. But Jordan told them to bandage it, got up and finished the game."

"The girl who hit her?" Cuddy felt the fury boiling in the pit of her stomach.

"Is going before the NCAA review board for code of conduct violation. She'll likely be prohibited from playing this coming season but I can't say what they will rule for long term." Jennifer Myers' breath caught in her throat, seeing how small and helpless one of her star athletes appeared against the stark bed sheets.

"Good." Cuddy locked eyes with House who had remained uncommonly quiet during the exchange but with the way that Wilson was staring him down it was understandable that he was trying to make himself as invisible as possible. "Was there something you needed Dr. Wilson?" She took note that Wilson turned to House before he answered.

"Ah…no. I was just bringing Coach Myers here up to see you. You know me, always the good samaritan." He joked.

"Yeah you're a regular mother Theresa. That whole nun thing might give you some problems though." House bit out from his chair. "Although you'd look fabulous in a habit."

"What are you doing here?" Wilson took the opportunity to address House.

"Being a good friend."

Wilson rolled his eyes, thinking at times Houses' continuous sarcasm was more than a little trying. "Gotten tired of taking money from me; now you're hitting up Cuddy."

"I'm not hitting on Cuddy!" House cried, twisting in seat. Had Wilson been paying close enough attention to his friend he would have seen that the surprised indignation in his eyes was real.

"I don't have time for games; I have rounds to do." Wilson directed his gaze to Cuddy. "Dr. Cuddy, I am sorry to hear about your daughter." The words felt sterile and flat in his ears.

She nodded in thanks.

"I'd better be going too. I have twenty girls to organize and get to the airport." Coach Myers added. "It was a pleasure to meet you Dr. Cuddy, I only wish it had been under better circumstances." She held out her hand to her athlete's mother. "Tell Jordan to give me a call whenever she's up to it and if you have any questions call or e-mail me." She gave one last fleeting look to her player, her heart breaking to see such a vital and lively girl left as no more than an empty shell.

Both visitors left the room with Jennifer Myers pulling the door closed behind her. Cuddy sat back down on the edge of the bed watching Jordan for any sign that she would wake up. Lifting gentle hands she brushed her daughter's cheeks and forehead, taking care to run them over the stark white bandage winding around her head.

"Staring at her won't get her to wake up any faster." House commented.

"I'd do anything at this point if I thought it would work." She admitted. "You know Wilson is going to hound you about being in here with me." She frowned.

"He hounds me everyday, it's kinda a game we play." He shrugged. "And I'm only in here to annoy you." The smirk appeared forced even to her.

"You're doing a lousy job of it." She smiled. "I think you're in here to get me into bed." She resumed her position leaning against the wall over the head of the bed.

"Last time I managed to do that, I ended up with a full grown kid. You were a tough one to crack though. I don't think I've ever worked so hard to get a woman into bed before or after you." He conveniently left out the fact that there had been no one he had wanted to work so hard for.

**_Flashback_**

_The weight room at Yale was filling up with athletes coming from class for a quick workout before their evening meal. House had been using the free-weights for twenty minutes and he was beginning to feel the familiar burning sensation in his bicep and tricep. Putting down the weights he prepared to work his core, already feeling the claustrophobia the busy gym generated._

_He heard the feminine laughter before he got a look at the new arrivals in the gym. Two girls in tight tank tops and shorts walked through the doors, depositing their water bottles on the floor by the back of the room and doing a quick survey to see what pieces of equipment were available to them. Ever since the football team had been given their own weight room, it had been easier for the other athletes at the school to get an opportunity to use the gym._

_House was watching the two girls like every other male in the room but with a decisive action he knew of all of them he would be in the best position to make a move. Seeing the girl with darker hair making her way to the bank of treadmills at the back of the gym he slipped around the machines to grab the one beside her. Although the dark haired girl's friend was not bad to look at, he had always been partial to brunettes._

_Subconsciously, he turned up the setting on his machine casting a sidelong look at the girl. She caught his eye and shot him at tight lipped smile. A few minutes later she adjusted her machine to a brisk pace saying 'hi' to one of the basketball players as he walked by._

_"Hey Lise." House noticed the return of the blonde friend his new interest had arrived with._

_"Yeah." House watched her lips part to reveal perfect white teeth._

_"Kevin, Scott and Jill said everyone's going to Milligan's tonight for drinks. You in?" She pulled a dynaband back and forth in front of the treadmills._

_"I have a lab due tomorrow morning; if we go late I'm in." She pumped her arms to keep better pace._

_"Oh shit is that physiology lab due tomorrow?" House watched with mounting amusement as all the blood drained from the blonde's face._

_"Clare, I reminded you about it three days ago." Lisa shook her head in exasperation._

_"I forgot. I've gotta go." She dropped the band and grabbed her stuff off the floor._

_"Are you still going to make it to Milligan's tonight?" Lisa called after her._

_"Of course I am." Clare smiled on her way out._

_The gym flooded with the normal hum of machines, weights and voices as Lisa refocused on her breathing while upping her speed once more. Her eyes passed over the room, smiling at the faces she knew until she came to the machine beside her once more. The guy jogging on it had long legs, large muscular thighs and smaller calves, both with not a hint of fat on them. She made sure to take only the most surreptitious of glances._

_"Yo House!" Someone using the free weights yelled over the noise of the room._

_Lisa watched as the guy jogging beside her lifted his head in the direction of the voice. "What?" He yelled back._

_"Coach changed practice to seven tomorrow morning. That means an extra hour of sleep." The other guy smiled in delight._

_"Don't get too excited there Barns, you'll embarrass the ladies." His dry response drew laughter from the rest of the men in the room and many of the women._

_"You're just jealous because if you got excited no one would notice." Barns shot back with a grin._

_"Now, now boys rein in the claws." A larger guy doing crunches in the corner teased._

_House realized the brunette on the treadmill to his left was watching him and took the opportunity to make a connection. "I thought I was just being paranoid but it turns out he was checking me out in the locker room; I didn't realize he had such problems with proportions though." He spoke loud enough for only her to hear._

_Lisa laughed in spite of herself. She got a view of the guy's sky blue eyes and masculine, chiseled features. "I heard that perception of size was a common problem among men." She deadpanned._

_House's interest was immediately piqued. It wasn't often a girl would rise to the occasion when he made some unseemly comment but this one managed to do it with flare. Suddenly the fact that she was hot was only the icing on the cake._

_"So what's your sport?" House asked casually._

_"Tennis and cross-country." She took a breath. "What about you?"_

_"Look at you, the little over-achiever." He made a face. "I play lacrosse and I'm on the Yale Crew."_

_"A bit of a hypocrite aren't you." Lisa smirked._

_"I haven't seen you in here before. Are you a freshman?" He was still trying to decide how much of his time she was worth._

_"No, I'm not a freshman and it's too bad for you really because if I were you might have actually had a shot with that lame-ass line." Lisa upped the speed on the machine and House followed suit._

_"Oh, you wound me." He claimed dramatically, clutching his chest_

_"You should go get that checked." She nodded to his chest where he had clutched it. "Before it does more damage to your social life that is." She raised her eyebrows in jest._

_"It can't be doing too much damage; you're still talking to me." He pointed out._

_"You caught me at a disadvantage, I can't go anywhere." Her hands broke tempo long enough to gesture to the bars of the treadmill on either side to use for balance._

_"Well, while I've got you trapped…." He trailed off with a wide smile. Lisa's stomach flip-flopped at the sight. "What year are you in and why is it that I haven't seen you around before?"_

_Lisa weighed the option of telling him or keeping quiet and making her exit right then. Something about this guy intrigued her though, so she kept running. She had spent the majority of her teens running from any time of relationship, from feelings similar to those this stranger managed to stir within her; the irony wasn't lost that she was in rapid motion during the meeting. The silent question she asked herself was whether she was still running away or if she was taking the first few steps toward something more._

_"I'm a sophomore. And the few times I came here last year I would have disappeared around all the football players." She shrugged. She saw him open his mouth but cut him off. "If you ask me what my major is, I'm liable to forget the workout and flee."_

_"Well I'm out of things to say then." House signed sarcastically._

_"I'm Lisa." She offered her right hand in way of introduction, deciding he was a least worth getting to know a little better._

_House awkwardly shook her hand with his left, afraid if he reached across with the other he would loose his balance on the fast moving tread. "Greg House." He managed not to look sheepish at his oversight of an introduction._

_"Greg House." She restated. "You're famous Greg." She smiled._

_"Really, and which of my athletic accomplishments have you heard of." His grin was smug._

_"None." Lisa almost groaned at the bravado. "I was referring more to your complete lack of classroom attendance while managing to keep a 4.0 GPA. From what I've heard you don't even attend your labs."_

_"I'm more of an independent learner." He shrugged. "And I conduct my own labs." His nefarious grin should have been her first hint that he was being serious but she missed it while getting lost in his eyes and almost losing her footing on the moving machine._

_"I'd love to stay and chat but I have a lab report to prepare." She slowed the treadmill until it stopped._

_"Need any help?" Greg's lips curved up into a wiry form that almost looked like a smile._

_"I'm good thanks." She took a sip from her water bottle._

_"Well then maybe you want to get a drink after you finish your work tonight." House decided if he didn't get bold he would loose his chance with the dark haired beauty._

_"Sorry, I have plans tonight." Lisa was surprised to realize that she really was sorry that she wasn't going to see him again. "But if you drop my Milligan's tonight, maybe we can get that drink." She smiled, excited at the prospect._

_"Nice to meet you Lisa." House let loose a genuine smile aimed at Lisa._

_"You too Greg."_

_**End Flashback**_

"I can't believe you actually made me become your friend before you would sleep with me." House through his head back against the chair in exasperation.

"I can't believe you actually took the time to get to know me." Cuddy grinned.

"Yeah, well you were a hot undergrad." He shrugged.

"Oh Greg you know just what all the girls want to hear." She mock swooned.

"Hey Cuddy, don't hate the playa, hate the game." He teased.

"I appreciate you sitting with me but don't you have better things to do?" She hinted at the clinic hours he was neglecting.

"Nope, I figure you pay those three whiney things that follow me around so they should start earning their keep." He referenced Chase, Cameron and Foreman. "And anyway, I think she's my favorite patient."

"Why, because she's related to you?"

"No, because she's unconscious. I love patients who're hitting the serious zees. Means I don't have to listen to them yammering something about bedside manner." He attempted to sound aloof.

"I'm a little tired right now, I hope you don't mind if I wait until tomorrow to badger you about clinic duty." She yawned.

"I'm a very understanding guy." House relaxed back into the chair, watching Cuddy close her eyes against the florescent light of the hospital room.

**TBC**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN**: Two more exams to go then I'm free for a while. Thank you to everyone for the feedback. It propels me to write.

**QT ROO** – You didn't misread. She is in her first year of Medical School. It's actually not as difficult to do both as one might think. I have four friends who are in their currently in their first year and still play, and I intended to do the same when I got into medical school, before I decided to change my major LOL. You get used to the time management aspects of your life I suppose.

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**Chapter 9**

**DAY 2 of COMA**

"Where the hell did House run off to yesterday?" Chase clicked his pen closed, sliding it into his lab coat pocket.

"Dr. Cuddy was on the forth floor all day, he likely took advantage of her distraction and played his videogames." Cameron took a sip of her coffee.

"I don't know why Cuddy insists House does clinic duty as it is. The patients would be better off if he left them alone and it would certainly cut back on the lawsuits." Chase sighed.

"It's not about the work for the two of them; it's the principle of the matter now. Neither House nor Cuddy are willing to back down." Foreman added his enlightened view on the situation. "And as for where House was yesterday, I heard that he spent the day on the forth floor with Cuddy." He smiled slyly.

"For a guy who hates gossip you sure do manage to have all the best information." Chase furrowed his brow.

"I'm betting on the videogame." Cameron reiterated.

"How's Jordan Cuddy doing?" Chase ran his hands through his hair while asking Foreman.

"Better. No sign of any more bleeding. Now we're just waiting for her to wake up to find out the extent of the damage." He lowered himself heavily into the chair in the break room. "In a span of six years she's sustained four serious concussions, I'm surprised she was still coherent enough to walk let alone play lacrosse."

"What were the concussions from?" Cameron leaned against the counter.

Opening up the file in front of him, Foreman perused Jordan's medical history for the causes of head injury. "Lacrosse ball to the head, fell off a surf board, skiing accident, mountain biking."

"Surfing…. sounds like your kind of girl Chase." Cameron smiled around her cup.

"Who's Chase's kind of girl?" House blew into the room with an air of determination.

"Dr. Cuddy's daughter." Cameron replied.

"You know it's very narrow minded to think that all Australia surfs Dr. Cameron." Chase rolled his eyes.

"It doesn't matter anyway; the girl obviously wouldn't be interested in you." House gave Chase a dirty look. "She looks as though she actually has taste."

"Where did you disappear to yesterday?" Cameron asked, moving closer to House.

"If I wanted you to know, I would have told you yesterday. You were that kid in school who all the other kids wanted to beat up weren't you Cameron?" House sifted through the refrigerator contents looking for an apple.

Foreman could see the ire rising on Cameron and decided to jump in to avoid watching House crush her. "So what's the verdict on the Wilcox woman?" At the blank look House threw at him he elaborated. "The patient with the respiratory distress."

"We prescribed a steroid to improve lung capacity and put her on a broad-spectrum antibiotic to clear any infection." Chase stood and stretched.

"And you managed to do it all on your own." House cheered factiously. The sound of three pagers going off in the room pulled the attention from him momentarily.

"It's a 911 on Hailey Wilcox." Chase reattached his pager to his belt and took off out the door with his two colleagues.

"I suppose I spoke to soon." House trailed behind the fast paced doctors.

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In Hailey Wilcox's room the respiratory monitor was crying at the obvious distress of the patient. Cameron and Chase got into the room first, taking either side of the bed and turning on the oxygen. Cameron pulled the mask over the woman's mouth while Foreman read the monitors.

"Her oxygen percentage is below fifty, her heart's tachycardic and she-" Suddenly the patient vomited into her oxygen mask.

"I'm giving her a shot of Ativan." Chase announced. "It should calm her down and let her breath easier."

"You might want to clean that up before she aspirates it." House pointed to the oxygen mask.

"I'll call the nurse." Chase said once things relaxed in the room.

"Finally an interesting case." House stated with joy.

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"So what do we know?" House stood in front of his whiteboard, marker at the ready.

"Twenty-six years old presented with fever, vomiting and respiratory distress." Cameron answered.

"Test showed?" House asked, writing down the symptoms.

"Nothing. All they did was confirm the symptoms. Her white blood cell count is elevated which means that it's likely a result of infection." Chase glanced down at the chart in front of him.

"Or she could be fighting a cold." House countered. "She was improving after being put on the steroid so the question is: what caused her to end up with a mask full of mushroom soup and hospital pudding?"

All three on the team grimaced at the vivid picture House felt compelled to paint for them.

"If it is an infection, the steroid could have strengthened it." Foreman shrugged.

"She's on a broad-spectrum antibiotic. Any infection would be taken care of by it."

"Maybe we should try her on a different antibiotic." Cameron added.

"Are we just supposed to sit back and wait to see if a new antibiotic will work while she gets worse?" Foreman crossed his arms.

"Have you got any better ideas?" She shot back.

"Look at the symptoms." He indicated the board in the middle of the room. "If they were a result of an infection they would have started to ease, instead they've gotten worse. I think we're missing something." He stood up straight as a sign to Cameron that he was confident in his theory.

"Now you're thinking like a good doctor." House pointed at him with no expression save the widening of his blue eyes. "But coming up with the theory is the easy part; you still have to go find out what you're missing and Dr. Hair over there knocked your patient out for the better part of the day so she won't be giving you any answers." House jerked his head in Chase's direction.

"Like she was in any condition to answer our questions." Chase defended his actions.

"This is all very interesting but I have places to be; page me when the drug induced stupor wears off."

On his way to the elevator House popped a pill and stopped to get a drink from the water fountain. Leaning heavily on his cane, he began to mentally prepare himself for the trivialities that awaited him in the clinic. With Cuddy dividing her time between sitting vigil by Jordan's beside and dealing with the everyday administrative duties of the hospital he figured the least he could do was put in a few hours in the clinic.

He wasn't quite sure how Lisa not telling him he had a daughter had ended up with him feeling guilty. After all, she had spent years working beside him, treating him and never once did she mention a child, his or otherwise.

"Dr. House?" One of the clinic nurses stared at him in wide-eyed wonder.

"Can I help you?" He scowled.

"What are you doing here?" She turned slightly to catch the eye of one of the other nurses.

"I work here." His harsh stare didn't deter her.

"But you're an hour early for your shift." She didn't even bother to keep the disbelief out of her tone. "You're actually working your shift." She amended, finding the latter far more surprising.

"Yeah well, last night I was driving home and my car skidded off the road, totaling the entire front end. I shouldn't have even survived. But I managed to pull myself from the wreckage and realized that I had crashed outside a church. I went inside in the hope of calling for help and the choir was singing." He paused for dramatic effect, keeping his expression as straight as possible. It was then I had an epiphany that God kept me alive so that I could heal the sick and do his work here on earth." He concluded with a muffled cry. He pursed his lips and looked toward the ceiling. "Oh no wait, that's what happened on General Hospital yesterday. My mistake." He smirked, picking up a chart from the desk and walking toward an exam room.

With his leg acting up more than usual that morning, he took his time getting to the closed exam room door, spending the extra seconds reflecting on the joy he got from bating the nursing staff.

"You know, you should be nicer to the nurses. It helps if they like you." Cameron seemed to come out of nowhere behind him.

"What? Are you stalking me now?" He growled, making a mental note to take a couple more Vicodin as soon as he was through his the patient. "And the only doctors who make friends with the nurses are the ones who screw up and need them to cover their mistakes. I don't screw up ergo I have no need to play happy hospital with the smock sisters." He left her standing outside the exam room with a closed door in the face.

"So what seems to be the – agh." He recoiled with a disgusted look. "Well that's not normal." He announced to the patient.

A middle aged woman sat on the bed with her hands on her cheeks trying to stem the flow of blood from her eyes. Her husband stood anxiously over her doing a good job of seeming both nauseas and worried.

"What's wrong with her?" The husband almost jumped with the sound of his own voice.

"I don't know, let me look into my crystal ball and find out." He rolled his eyes, picking up the pen light on the side table. He attempted to find the source of the blood but the woman's hands were obstructing his view. Rolling his eyes again he shoved the kidney shaped vomit tray at her to catch the drips running off her cheeks as opposed to having her hands in the way. "Here." The grunt didn't faze the scared couple.

"Cuddy." He muttered under his breath. "All the good patients come in before my shift."

"What did you say?" The husband leaned forward instinctively to better hear House's low tones.

"I said, have you been experiencing any other symptoms besides the obvious?" He could see nothing wrong with her eyes themselves.

"I've had some severe nose bleeds the past few days." The woman responded.

The blood flow had begun to slow marginally, making it easier to assess her condition. House put on the nasal attachment to be able to see up her nose. Getting a good look, he quickly made his diagnoses.

"You've got a broken blood vessel in your upper nasal cavity. By stemming the flow from your nose you forced the blood upward and out your eyes. I'll send in someone to cauterize it for you. And you might want to try buying a humidifier for your house."

With nothing further to add he retreated, planning on clearing the patients quickly to give him time to play his PSP before the three babies began looking for him to wipe their asses. Coming upon the closed door to his next clinic patient he could hear a commotion inside.

"Carly, put that down before you break it." A woman yelled just as House opened the door.

"Brandon, take your fingers out of your mouth. There are germs all over this place." She turned weary eyes to the tall man with the cane. "Are you the doctor?"

"No, I just like to hang out in the exam rooms, very relaxing." House grimaced as the little girl in the room ran a circle around him.

The woman had no time to deal with the sarcasm of an elitist doctor, thus dismissing the comment all together. Instead she turned a concerned look to her son, who was squirming on her lap. "We've been waiting for three hours to see a doctor; what kind of hospital are you people running here?" She sneered.

"I really don't think you want me answering that." He tilted his head with wide eyes, giving her an opportunity to back down.

"My son's skin is orange and you people have been doing jack all to fix it." She shouted.

"Yeah, jack all." The girl who was running around the room repeated.

"Carly! Sit down!" The woman turned the shout on her daughter. "I want to speak to the person who is in charge." She demanded of House. "If my son turns out to be dying, you better bet I'm going to sue your asses!"

"Sue your asses!" The little girl repeated again.

"Carly! Don't use that language."

House stepped away from the three-ringed circus to pick up the phone on the wall. "Yeah, it's Dr. House, can you page Dr. Cuddy and let her know there is someone who would like to have a word with her here in the clinic."

"Am I dying Mommy?" The little boy on his mother's lap turned his orange colored face toward her, tears building beneath his lashes.

"Of course not." The mother smiled at her son, then switch gears and glared at House.

"My brother looks like an Ompa Lompa." The little girl told House with an evil glint in her eye."

"I do not." The boy insisted, his orange arms flailing. "I'm hungry; I want a snack." He complained.

"Carly get the snacks out of my bag." She told her daughter. The little girl pulled out the bag of carrots, handing them to her brother who proceeded to wolf down as many as he could fit in his mouth.

House felt his eyes rolling before he could stop them. If the woman was so concerned with her son's health one would think that she would want him to be treated before insisting on complaining about the service. It was unbelievable how many people walked through the hospital or clinic doors and expected to be treated as though they were at a restaurant. He figure that if his patient's decided to tip him for his care he would be inclined to be a tiny bit nicer. He almost laughed out loud at the thought.

Behind him the exam room door opened and the sound of heels on the tiled floor echoed through the sterile room. Cuddy closed the door before addressing the others in the room, nearly being knocked over by little girl with blonde hair charging in circles around the bed.

"Ompa Lompa ompadup, I have a brother who's orange and dumb too." She cried with a bright smile.

"I'm Dr. Cuddy." She smiled at the angry woman on the table, giving House a sideways glare, figuring it was all his fault.

"You're the one in charge?" The woman said in disbelief, sizing up the smaller woman.

"Yes." She raised an eyebrow at the orange color of the little boy's skin on the woman's lap. "Is there a problem?" House received another stern glare from her.

"Yes!" The woman stated sharply. "I've been waiting three hours to see a doctor. And every time I asked your staff why it was taking so long they told me that priority was given to the patient's that were bleeding or in emergency situation. Are you telling me that my son's condition isn't a priority to this hospital?" She bit out.

"I do apologize for the wait but the nurses were correct in what they told you. We have limited staff at the clinic and therefore have to run it as a triage. That means that the patients with the most severe injuries and conditions are bumped ahead. Now doctor House is one of our best, so I'm sure he'll have you out of here in no time."

The woman didn't even seem to hear Cuddy's very generous apology. "I'm going to have my husband sue your collective asses for this. This is what you get with this affirmative action bullshit! Women in positions of power who spend more time buying shoes and getting their hair done than doing their job!"

House took an involuntary step back, seeing Cuddy's entire body bristle at that comment. He wanted to get as far out of the line of fire as possible because any second the bullets would begin flying.

"I don't think I've ever heard anything so unbelievably ridiculous come out of someone's mouth in my life. Go ahead and sue the hospital; I'd get shear joy at seeing you laughed right out of the litigation and as for how I run this hospital; I manage to run an entire medical school and teaching hospital and you can't even keep your kids in line. And as for your son's serious condition, you've been feeding him too many freaken' carrots and as a result you've turned his skin orange. Why don't you try giving the kid some chocolate or a least a different vegetable!" With that she stormed out the room, not having the time or the patience to continue the conversation.

"Hormones." House shrugged. "You know what they say about women in positions of power." He mocked, following the trail Cuddy had blazed out the door.

He caught up with her waiting for the elevators just outside the clinic. "That was so hot." He said in low tones by her ear. "If you had continued that tirade I was liable to embarrass myself in there." He smiled smugly.

"I yell at you all the time." She tilted her head back to look at him.

"Yeah, and it's hot then too but it's even better when you're ripping apart someone else cause I get to watch." He nudged her with his hip. "Face it Cuddy, you're just a regular sexpot." His smile was not enough to rid her of the unimpressed set of her features. "You were never this uptight before." He pouted.

"People grow up Greg." Her simple response brought a furrow to his brow but she got onto the elevator and disappeared behind the metal doors before he could question her about it.

**_Flashback_**

_Milligan's Pub - New Haven, Connecticut_

_For a weekday the pub was more crowded than usual but with the finale of midterms most of the population of Yale was out celebrating with as many drinks as they could afford._

_"Lise, order another pitcher of beer. I'm going to get a tray of shots." Lisa's friend Clare had managed to finish most of her lap report and was determined to spend time at the bar before heading home to finish it before class the next morning._

_Between the five people sitting at the table with them, they had managed to polish off three pitchers already. She stood at the crowded bar, waiting her turn._

_"What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?" A deep voice called from directly behind her._

_Smiling, she turned her head enough to see Greg House with his ever present smirk. "Two bad lines in the same day. Do you have to work at it or does making an ass of yourself come naturally?" She ordered her pitcher when the bartender signaled he was ready to help her._

_"Here." He laid down the money for the pitcher when the bartender returned with the drink._

_"You know, you're buying drinks for my entire table right." She quirked an eyebrow._

_"Small price to pay. Literally." He joked. "Now you have to invite me to share it as well."_

_"You'd think." She nodded but walked away with no invitation._

_"Lise, who's the guy?" Clare asked once she returned to the table, having seen her friend talking to someone at the bar._

_"Just some guy I met at the gym today." She waved her off and downed one of the shot glasses with ease._

_"He's cute." She checked him out from her spot at the table._

_Lisa glanced over her shoulder catching his eye for a second before they both looked away. "Yeah he is."_

_"So why didn't you invite him over?" She was caught almost yelling in her friend's ear over the noise of music and people in the pub._

_"Wouldn't want to make it too easy on him, would I?" One side of her mouth lifted in a teasing smile._

_"You're bad." Clare was loving every second of it._

_An hour later the pub was beginning to empty bit by bit as the night grew later. House had kept one eye on Lisa's table the entire time, hoping to catch her looking in his direction but she had managed to stay elusive. With very little time left before the bartender would make last call House decided he would have to do something before he lost the opportunity. Downing the dregs of his beer, he stalked to the table by the window that she was seated at._

_"Okay, I give up." He announced to the entire table and succeeded in getting Lisa to turn and face him. "Tell me what I have to do to get you to have a drink with me." The resignation in his tone garnered him smiles from everyone other than his woman he was focused on at the table._

_"You mean those terrible lines were all that you had?" She raised a perfectly manicure dark eyebrow. "I expected more from you Greg."_

_Greg bit the inside of his lip, thinking for a moment. "More?" He paused then nodded his head. "Alright, I'll give you more." And before the final word had tapered out he had grabbed her hand and spun her around on her stool, catching her lips with his own as her momentum carried her forward and into his steadying arms._

_Greg felt the initial surprise ebb and her lips soften under the gentle pressure of his own. He allowed his tongue to venture out and trace the crease that separated her lips, feeling them part, providing the invitation he had been denied earlier in the night. She forced his tongue back into his mouth which was quickly joined by hers._

_With his sanity barely intact, Greg pulled away from her. He was sure that the glassy-eyed wonder was etched as plainly into his face as it was in hers. Waiting for her to become steady on her own feet again, he dropped his hands, pulling away from her completely._

_"Ball's in your court now Lisa." His whispered words took their time penetrating her foggy senses. And by the time she realized what he had said Greg House had gone._

_**End Flashback**_

"Alright, what is going on with you?" Wilson was almost on top of House the second he stepped off the elevator.

"Did I start wearing a bell and no one told me?" House huffed, limping across the floor.

"I saw Cuddy storm off the elevator a few moments ago and figured you couldn't be far behind." Wilson explained.

"Wherever an angry Cuddy will go doesn't always mean a House will follow." His eyes danced over all the surfaces on the second floor hallway.

"Yeah, I'll remember that for next time." Shaking his head Wilson continued to keep pace with House. "But you didn't answer my question." The two of them came upon the nursing station.

"It doesn't happen to every man but you shouldn't worry, they have medications for it now." He shot the nurses an uncomfortable face.

"Nice." Wilson sighed. "Well whatever is going on with you I thought you would like to know that Stacy is back from the legal conference."

"I'm sure Mark will be happy to have his wife back." House pulled the chart for the patient his team was treating as he talked to Wilson.

"Now you're starting to worry me. Are you sick or something?" He cocked his head to the side.

"Or something." He closed the chart and left Wilson standing at the nurses' station.

**TBC**

Please R & R


	10. Chapter 10

**AN**: I noticed that the percentage sign doesn't show up in simple mode on so in the few chapters previously it would have said that Jordan lost 2 percent of brain tissue. Further, having just seen the ep on tuesday night, I now know a little more about Cuddy and House thus made the correction of school location. Just goes to show you what happens when you try to write after only seeing four or five episodes lol. Thanks again to all that have replied! You guys rock. And I'll have another chapter soon.

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**DAY 3 of Coma**

Cuddy had taken to staying into the early morning at the hospital, watching over Jordan then heading home for a quick change of clothes to come back and work. House had stopped in the night before and in a round-about way had attempted to get her to go home but she stood her ground. However, the sleepless nights were beginning to weigh on her and her nerves were starting to fray around the edges.

Rubbing at her tired eyes she read over a paragraph on the most recent hospital financial statement for the forth time, trying to focus her brain on it long enough to make sense. A soft clatter drew her head up to her office door where House was balancing two cups of coffee in one hand.

"Yikes." He cringed when she looked at him.

Cuddy rolled her eyes and stifled a yawn.

"I thought that you could use this." He leaned his cane against the end of her desk and handed her the top sealed cup. "I wasn't sure what kind of mood you'd be in so I got regular coffee, and a café mocha in case…well it's obviously a café mocca morning." He made another face at her appearance.

"Thanks." Her sarcastic tone was directed at the comment but the slight upturn of her lips let him know that she was grateful for the hot drink.

House made himself comfortable in the chair across from her. "Have dinner with me tonight." He blurted out.

The drink stopped at Cuddy's lips in surprise. "Thanks for the offer but I don't want to leave Jordan." She dropped her eyes to the plastic lid of her cup.

"You don't have to." He replied. "That's why the Chinese invented takeout."

"You know Stacy's back." Cuddy hedged.

"You're the second person who's mentioned that. Is this the part where you order me to go and see her because some idiot with too much time on their hands wants to sue me for not kissing it and making it better?" He frowned.

"No. Although I'm sure that conversation will occur in the not too distant future." She smirked. "Look, you won't hear me saying this often but hospital business aside." Cuddy drew in a breath. "I don't know what we're doing but I think we need to make some distinctions about what exactly this is." She gestured with both hands, becoming nervous at the onset of that particular discussion.

"I just asked you to have dinner with me; what's not distinct about that?" House shrugged.

"And you've been on your best behaviour lately, which isn't saying much." She added. "You also kissed me because of a bet and you've been salivating over Stacy ever since she walked back into this hospital." She stood from her seat to pace. "Too much has happened this week to have your mixed messages to deal with on top of everything else. I haven't slept for more than three consecutive hours for the past four nights; I can barely keep my eyes open; my daughter, who has managed to avoid me for the better part of two years is quite possibly going to have irreversible brain damage and you've suddenly decided to play this twisted little game with me."

House felt her words sting but despite the further furrowing of his brow he gave nothing away. "So I take it that's a no on dinner." He shrugged.

The incredulous stare she leveled at him sent him out of his seat and out the door before the coffee had cooled enough to drink. Cuddy watched after him, too tired to muster the energy to be frustrated with his social ineptitudes.

Turning bloodshot eyes back to the document she had been trying to get through the entire morning, she felt her mind drift to a simpler time when she could afford to take some risks. When one of the most difficult decisions she had to make was whether to go out the night before an exam.

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**_Flashback_**

_Lisa's roommate was meeting with her study group at the library affording her the luxury of a quiet apartment to work in. Reading through her anatomy text she paused to make the occasional note and give the phone in her room a passing glance. Without allowing the time for doubts to enter her mind, she reached for the phone, dialing the number that had sat beside it for the better part of the week._

_"Hello." She heard on the other end._

_"Hi, is Greg there please?" She held her breath unknowingly._

_"Yeah." The deep voice grunted. "Hold on." She could hear the phone being dropped and the sound of someone yelling what she could only assume to be Greg's name._

_"Hello?" There was a question in his tone._

_"Hi Greg, it's Lisa."_

_"Well, well, well." He smiled. "To what do I owe this honor to?" He joked._

_"I was wondering if you'd be interested in getting something to eat later tonight?" She leaned back on her bed._

_He sighed with frustration into the receiver. "I have a team dinner tonight." It was just his luck that he would finally meet a girl who was somewhat interesting and he wouldn't be able to go out with her because he was doomed to a forced team bonding session._

_"Alright." She tipped her head back, closing her eyes against the disappointment. "Well maybe-"_

_"I can come by after dinner." He jumped in. "It'll probably be late but ahh…" He trailed off, not too sure what he was trying to say._

_"Sure." Lisa fought a small smile. "I've got a midterm in two days so I'll be studying most of the night."_

_"So I'll see you in while." Greg said nonchalantly._

_"Yeah. Bye."_

_"Bye Lisa." She could hear the smirk in his voice over the line before there was nothing left but the dial tone._

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_Lisa had taken the time to tidy her side of the room, clearing the bed and desk of the abundant books littering it. The living space was functional at best with only a desk, bed and wardrobe for each girl, hardly a place to entertain._

_At precisely 11:45 Greg called to be buzzed into the residence. With him only moments away from her room Lisa began to feel the first stirrings of nerves. She was by nature a relaxed and adventurous person, ready to try new things and meet new people but something about Greg House threw off her natural confidence and ease. Taking a calming breath, she drew a shaky hand through her long dark curls, managing to get her hand caught and tangled after startling at the sound of Greg's knock._

_"Hey." She breathed opening it the door._

_"So what took you so long?" Greg dismissed the attempted pleasantries as she moved aside to let him in. "It's been almost a week since I blew your mind at the bar and you're only now calling me." His bravado immediately cut the tension and did away with any nerves Lisa was feeling._

_"Blew my mind?" She raised an eyebrow. "Gee Greg you don't have to be so modest." She smirked._

_"Ah, but you're not denying it." He took two steps closer to her by the bed. "Having your mind blown that is."_

_"You caught me by surprise. It was a fluke." Her hands went to her hips in clear statement of challenge._

_"Would you like to test that theory?" In one smooth movement Greg was standing directly in front of Lisa._

_"How was your dinner?" Despite the change in subject Lisa didn't back away._

_"The food was bad and the company worse. I would have much rather been here." His voice lowered an octave._

_"Aren't you the sweet talker." Lisa had to lean back slightly to be able to look him in the eye. She was caught between laughing at his antics and swooning at the sharp blue that greeted her._

_"Well I'm a sweet guy." He smiled._

_"I've heard people discussing your attributes on many occasions and I can't remember sweet ever coming up as one of them." She put her arms out a bit to catch her balance in order to lean back to look at her guest._

_"So my reputation precedes me." He anchored her by lightly placing his hands on her waist. He was so stunned by the heat traipsing through his fingers where he touched her that he almost missed the sudden change in Lisa's breathing. "You mentioned something about an exam on the phone. Let me guess, you just want me for my mind."_

_"You caught me." Lisa's throaty speech just seemed to add to her sexy air. "I love a guy who can balance organic chemical equations in his head." Being so close, Lisa dropped her voice to a low whisper._

_Having given her ample time to retreat from their intimate positions, Greg thought it safe enough to move in for a second taste of Lisa Cuddy's full lips. As their lips settled against one another, relaxing into a careful rhythm of give and take her hands came up to tangle in Greg's short, wavy locks._

_Nipping at her lower lip garnered a chuckle from Lisa, turning into a startled laugh when Greg used his weight's momentum to bring them crashing down on top of her bed. They continued to kiss until the need for oxygen finally drew them apart. Greg rested his forehead on hers, both of them trying in earnest to catch their breath._

_"You know, I'm not going to be much help with organic chemistry if you've got your tongue down my throat." Greg's dry comment was met with further laughter by Lisa. "Just what a guy always wants to hear after kissing a girl, her laughing at him."_

_Shifting out from underneath him, Lisa maneuvered the two of them to lay side-by-side on her narrow dorm bed._

_"I'd have thought you'd be used to that reaction." She wiped at the light lipstick that had transferred to his lips._

_"She's snippy!" He declared with a grin. "First you pretend you have no idea who I am at the gym, then you ignore me at the bar; you play an evil game Lisa Cuddy."_

_"Until you introduced yourself at the gym, I didn't have any idea who you were. I only knew you by reputation." She didn't bother to explain her behavior at the bar. It had been a knee-jerk reaction to keep Greg at a distance. As she had understood it, Greg House was more interested in making fools out of his peer than dating any of them. "Speaking of which," she raised her eyebrows "what brings the living legend of Michigan to my dorm room tonight?"_

_"You invited me?" He smiled._

_"As I recall, I asked you to dinner; you turned me down then invited yourself here." She returned the smile._

_"Would you like me to leave?" His smile disappeared but the playfulness remained in his eyes._

_"Yes." Lisa mimicked his mocking seriousness. A minute passed with neither moving nor saying a word._

_"I'm leaving." The words drifted out of Greg's mouth just before his lips once more embraced hers. This time the kiss was sweeter and more lighthearted lasting a mere few seconds._

_"Sure you are." Lisa teased. Both of them knew the value of having time alone while living in the dorm. And with her roommate out for the night at her study group and then her boyfriend's, Lisa was not going to miss the opportunity to get to know Greg. "I'm curious about something." She pulled back slightly. "Aren't you a little old to only be a masters student?" She did her best to keep from laughing at the indignant expression on the face in front of her._

_"I'm not sure if I'm more offended that you implied that I'm old or stupid." He pouted._

_"Go with old, it's far more scandalous."_

_"You make it sound as though I'm middle aged, which by the way would be far more scandalous but equally as hot. I'm twenty-four and if you hadn't noticed, quite spry."_

_"And if the rumors are true you only came to Michigan four years ago. Did your undergrad in three years and just started your masters in epidemiology."_

_"Wow, you're good." Greg interrupted to joke._

_"So the question remains, where were you before you enrolled here?" Lisa was careful to keep her tone light in the off-chance that the topic was taboo for him. It looked as though he was debating the choice of fleeing or answering._

_But in the end he ended up surprising her with what he was willing to reveal. "I traveled for a bit when I graduated; backpacked Western Europe and when I came home my father insisted that I enlist in the air force." He let a sigh escape._

_"Let me guess, your father is military through and through." Lisa frowned and hurried to explain at the questioning look she was receiving. "My uncle was career Navy, he not only resented my father for not joining but he basically strong-armed both of my cousins into attending Annapolis." She paused to give him a chance to assimilate this new information. "But you managed to escape the military life." She tried to brighten for his sake._

_"Yeah, as it turns out the air force and I didn't make fast friends. Pretty sure my father's not going to soon forget that little disgrace. Colonel House doesn't appreciate failure, especially when it's done intentionally." Greg smirked at the memory._

_The two continued to talk in quiet tones on Lisa's bed well into the middle of the night and when they finally took a moment to notice the time, it was after four in the morning. Both having an eight o'clock class that morning, they decided they were better off staying up rather than risk sleeping through the lectures._

_On his way home before class Greg pondered Lisa Cuddy. Very few people held his interest but she managed not only to do that but challenge him as well. She was naturally brilliant and able to assimilate information as quickly as he could which was a wonderful change. He knew that many of the people they went to school with studied every free hour they had to accomplish what he and Lisa could by skimming the text once._

_Greg did his best to stay out of relationships, women had a tendency to be clingy and far too co-dependent for his tastes but once again Lisa appeared to be the antithesis. She had her own life and friends and expected him to have the same, making him want to see her all the more. He was no more than ten minutes from her room when the urge to call her began to settle in. Without knowing what the incessant feeling was caused by, Greg labeled it annoying and pushed it aside._

**_End Flashback_**

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

"Served with any new lawsuits while I was away?" Stacy came up from behind House just outside his current patient's room.

"Sleep with any new cripples?" He shot back in irritation.

"Nice Greg." She was hardly deterred by his prickly attitude.

"What? It was a legitimate question. You are building quite a resume." Stacy leaned against the counter in the hallway, trying to catch his eye while he read the most recent patient update.

"And based on your medical practices so was mine." She countered.

"If you must know I have been the poster boy for healthcare workers around the world." He finally raised his eye to look at her.

"Not possible." Stacy refuted. "If that had happened the locust would already be swarming."

"Don't you have people to argue with that actually get paid for it?" He made a quick notation in the file before replacing it in the nursing station in box.

"I walked by Cuddy's office earlier. What the hell have you been up to that has her looking like a walking wreck?" Stacy followed hot on his heels as he moved down the hallway.

"You see Cuddy for two seconds and immediately assume that I had something if not everything to do with her current state." House stopped to turn an incredulous stare on Stacy.

"So you admit that she's in a state." Stacy pointed at him.

"If you're so concerned about Cuddy maybe you should ask Cuddy about it." House got into the elevator to take him to his office. "And just as a little heads up, we've had a very eventful week here so far." He smiled. "You should go away more often."

**TBC**


	11. Chapter 11

**AN:** I'm sorry for having left this for so long. Everyone was so great with the review and encouragement but life intervened and I lost my blood muse for a while. I'm trying to get back into it and also write Special K – which everyone has been amazing reviewing for. You're all wonderful and make me want to write as often as I can. Thank you. See first post for disclaimer.

**Chapter 11**

"Alright, what the hell has been going on here the last few days?" Stacy stormed the break room, ready to interrogate House's team.

Foreman and Chase looked up. "Based on your frown I can only assume you're talking about House." Foreman frowned in return.

"He's as rude and bitter as usual but I swear while I was talking to him, he was doing work and if I wasn't mistaken he was on his way down to the clinic. I know Dr. Cameron goes through his mail, so honestly, has he been served with any new lawsuits?" Stacy poured herself a cup of coffee and added a very liberal amount of non-sugar sweetener.

"As far as I know House hasn't even had a patient file a complaint in the last week; however Cameron may not be so lucky but Cuddy would be in a better position to explain that one." Chase answered.

"Why does everyone keep telling me to go and talk to Cuddy?"

"You mean you haven't heard?" Chase turn to fully face her in his chair.

"Heard what?" Stacy prompted. Now that she thought about it the entire hospital had a different air to it, House was simply the most notable to her.

"We had a patient come in with a head injury, she's out of immediate danger but the damage has yet to be fully assessed. And there is a good possibility that Cameron missed something in her initial diagnosis." Foreman was resigned in his explanation.

"Don't tell me any more. As this hospital's attorney I really don't want to hear any more about a potential screw up." Stacy took a sip of her coffee as a sign that they could continue with the story granted they leave out anything incriminating.

"She hasn't woken up after surgery yet and Dr. Cuddy's been pulling double duty running the hospital and worrying over the patient" Chase responded.

"No wonder she looks like she hasn't slept" Stacy muttered.

"I wouldn't mention that to her" Foreman cut in.

"But why is she so interested in this patient? Did this one fall off her roof too?" She crossed her arms across her body.

"Nope. The patient is her daughter" Chase smirked, quite pleased that he was able to share that piece of information.

"Her what!" Stacy splashed her coffee over the edge of her cup onto her hand, thankful that she had not taken the time to heat it up.

"Yeah, that was our reaction." Foreman pointed to her wide eyes and stunned silence.

"No." Stacy breathed. "But I've known Lisa, I mean I thought I…." She trailed off not able to recall a single time when Lisa had given any indication that she was a mother.

"Everyone in the hospital is holding their collective breaths; we all know that we're likely to get more information once Jordan wakes up."

"Wow. This is just…wow." Stacy set her cup down on the table, wiped her hand and left the room

"Nothing like this would have happened at the seminary." Chase shook his head.

**HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**

Stacy entered the wood paneled office of the Dean of Medicine not five minutes after speaking to House's team. She walked into the room unannounced and purposefully, sitting in one of the chairs opposite Cuddy's large desk in silence. Folding her hands in her lap she leveled a knowing gaze at the other woman.

"Who told?" she glanced from her work momentarily, "the woman who runs the gift shop? The maintenance guy on the fifth floor?"

"Dr Chase" Stacy sighed.

Cuddy raised both her hands in a gesture of futility and signed her name at the bottom of the report she had been reading when Stacy arrived.

"I didn't fully believe it until now."

"It's true." Cuddy offered up no more information.

"So…a daughter." Stacy leaned back her arched brows sitting high with interest. "How old is she?"

"Nineteen."

"Greg never mentioned her." Stacy had done the quick calculations and determined that Cuddy would have still been at Michigan when she was pregnant.

"He didn't know." Cuddy stared meaningfully at Stacy.

"But he does now." She was asking a question with her obtuse words; one that was too delicate to be voiced in its entirety.

"He does now." Cuddy nodded, answering what had gone unasked. Stacy knew of House's relationship with Cuddy during college so figuring paternity was not difficult.

"Who else knows?"

"No one at the hospital. I don't think even Wilson knows about our past relationship." Cuddy dropped her pen in order to rub her eyes.

"There's nothing past about it." Stacy scoffed. "When Greg and I were together we were great and I don't doubt for one second that he loved me. But Lisa, there was one thing that I didn't have that I knew Greg wanted more than anything. One thing that made it clear that what we had wasn't permanent. I wasn't you."

Cuddy pinned her with disbelieving blue eyes. Her nerves so frayed that hiding her surprise was an impossible feat.

"After his leg, Greg began pushing me away. Remember I told you that he wouldn't forgive me?" Cuddy nodded along "I knew he wouldn't, not because I went against his wishes but because it was the perfect opportunity to get me out of his life. I knew that when he saw you again, it would be the beginning of the end for us; because as much as I believed and maybe still do that he was my one, you're his." Cuddy opened her mouth, needing to say something in response but was forestalled by Stacy. "I'm not blaming you for the end of our relationship - that would have happened anyway. Greg has never stopped loving you, the only problem is that you've never realized it and he would never admit it."

"Stacy I-"

"Just food for thought Lisa." Stacy stood, her hands held up in a gesture of surrender. "I should go; I've got a week's worth of mail to sort through. And Lisa" she inclined her head toward the administrator "get some rest. Your daughter's better off with you coherent."

**HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**

_Thump_

_Thump_

_Thump_

Three sets of weary eyes glared at House as he bounced his cane on the floor of his office. He was staring at the lung x-rays they had taken of their patient earlier that day and trying for the life of him to figure out why the woman was having respiratory distress.

"It could be a rare pneumonia strain" Chase offered. His legs dangled from the sideboard he sat atop.

Cameron shook her head, "There'd be an accompanying cough and the antibiotics would have at least eased some of the symptoms, not exacerbated them."

"She could have a carcinoma in her lungs that hasn't shown up on the x-ray." Foreman suggested.

"Her white count was high, not low" Chase added. "It's not consistent with that form of cancer."

"But it doesn't mean it's not there" House intoned. He turned to his staff and pursed his lips, "Do a biopsy of her lung."

All three nodded and headed for the door but at the last minute Cameron stopped short and hung back. She waited for House to acknowledge her presence and when he didn't she moved back toward his desk and initiated the conversation herself.

"I was wondering if you needed anything." Cameron took a deep breath when House's sharp blue eyes turned on her.

"Uh…a lung biopsy of the patient. Why are you still here?" He frowned.

"You've been distracted for the passed few days. Usually a case like this would have all your attention but you disappear for hours at a time and when you are working with us, we don't have your full attention." Cameron curbed the impulse to shuffle her feet nervously as she wanted to maintain an air of confidence during the conversation with House.

"Is this your passive aggressive attempt to tell me that I'm not fit to be on this case?" He called her on the poorly masked comment.

"No that's not what I'm saying; it's just that when you get a case like this you stop everything else you're doing and focus on it." She backtracked, stumbling over her words.

"You know doctors have made a career of caring for more than one patient at a time. I'm pretty sure our patient's care isn't compromised just because he's not the only thing I think of."

"She." Cameron corrected.

"Well now that we have that cleared up you can run along and play in the lab with the other kids" House said sardonically.

"You're mad because Cuddy had a secret and you didn't know it. All your observation and analysis and you missed that your boss had a child and it's driving you crazy. You hate not knowing something and you hate it even more when people are able to put something by you." She deduced.

"Am I going to have to pay for this psychoanalysis cause I used all my cash on the newest video game for my PSP." He rolled his eyes.

"Just admit I'm right." Cameron's eyes flashed triumphantly.

"I think that you should spend less time trying to analyze me and more time doing your job because last time I checked you're going to have to go before a medical review board regarding your care of the Dean of Medicine's daughter. That's one firing squad I would not want to be sitting in front of." He smirked at her plight and watched her leave his office satisfied with her defeated posture.

House dropped his left leg off his desk top and spun in his chair to face his computer screen. A few clicks later he was reading every athletic profile and newspaper article he could find pertaining to Jordan Cuddy.

**HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**

"Fancy meeting you here." House walked in unannounced to Jordan's hospital room in the ICU ward. He balanced on his cane with one hand and held a bag wafting delicious aromas into the room.

"What are you doing here?" Cuddy closed the file she had been reading and dropped it into her briefcase.

"I brought dinner." He held up the bag for her to see and sat in the available chair opposite her.

"I thought I told you-"

"It's just dinner Lisa." House pulled out the containers, "I know there's no appealing to your sense of reason and making you see that this isn't your fault and you don't need to torture yourself so I've appointment myself your keeper until she wakes up." He indicated the unconscious girl lying in the bed between them.

"I don't need a keeper." She replied stonily.

"Your disheveled appearance begs to differ. And I happen to have it on good authority that you didn't even bother to go home last night. Now explain to me how you intend to trick rich people into giving you tons of money when you can't even remember your own name." He raised his eyebrows at her knowingly.

Cuddy sighed, "What'd you get?" She picked up one of the containers House had placed on the rolling table.

"Thai." He shrugged offhandedly, knowing it to be one of her favorites.

Smiling with genuine gratitude Cuddy spoke, "Thank you."

"Hmmm." House hummed dismissively.

Conversation ceased while Cuddy took the chance for the first time that day to satisfy her hunger. House watched with interest as Cuddy did her best to avoid his gaze, her own eyes flitting everywhere in the room sans the place he calmly rested with his meal. He smothered a smirk at her blatant actions and thought back to Saturday at the football game when for the first time in over a decade the rest of the world faded into the background while simultaneously becoming sharper in colour; no one other than Lisa Cuddy had ever stirred such tantalizing dichotomies within him.

"So junior's at Stanford now….where were you hiding her before she fled the roost? I'd go with locked in the basement but I happen to know you don't have one." House popped the top on a water bottle and took a sip.

"Applewood. Upstate New York." Cuddy's choppy answers were beginning to annoy House.

"You sent her to boarding school….I think that might have been the source of resentment _Mom_." He taunted.

"You'd think," Cuddy pointed her fork at him "but it was Jordan's idea. She found out they had one of the best Lacrosse coaches on the east coast and a special program designed for students with enhanced learning abilities and all but begged me to let her go. She came home most weekends provided she didn't have a tournament."

"How old was she when she went?"

"Twelve. She completed the International Baccalaureate program in high school which allowed her to get a jump start on classes at University." Cuddy became more animated in the conversation as House probed for information that she was able to give. In her younger years Cuddy had felt that she had a pulse on her daughter's life but since she had turned sixteen that pulse had gone missing.

"When did the two of you stop speaking?" House slouched into her chair; leaving Cuddy to tidy up the mess dinner had created.

"It happened slowly. The longer she was away from home the less she called, the less I called. Then she began going home with friends on some weekends or to my parent's. I didn't even realize how bad it had become until I received a postcard from Sydney two years ago. The lacrosse team was spending two weeks on the other side of the globe and I didn't even know she'd left the country. So there you go, that's the kind of mother your daughter has." Her eyes shot skyward, illustrating her own defeat.

"Would you like to be alone for this pity party?" House groaned. "Please, the kid probably has a shrine to you in her room at school. She's a teenager, she's just trying to be autonomous and doing a piss poor job of it. She'll get over it."

"That's your sage advice? She'll get over it?" Cuddy's eyes widened incredulously. "You sure are a quick study; three days on the job and already you've got this parenting thing down. I don't know why I didn't think of that before." She spit sarcastically.

"Well, not everyone can be as brilliant as I am." He twirled his cane absently.

"Yes, how horrible for us simpletons." She rolled her eyes.

"Speaking of simpletons, what's your position on Cameron for the review board?" House attempted to raise an issue that would shift her focus from self loathing to anger at someone else.

"I'm steering clear of the process. They're going to come down hard on her" she noted. "As an administrator and doctor I know that mistakes are made every day – we're fallible and I truly believe she's a good doctor. But as a mother…." She trailed off with a large intake of breath. "Anyway, Stacy advised that I keep my distance from her and the situation until the board convenes."

"Ah, so Stacy came to you after all," one side of his lips quirked in a smile "she interrogated me this morning about being the reason you looked so tired. I assured her I was on my _bestest_ behavior but she didn't believe me….can you imagine." He relayed with mock dismay.

"Wherever could she have gotten the notion that you would be the cause of my grief?" Cuddy tipped her head to the side and followed his trend of sarcasm. "She knows Jordan's yours." She informed him.

"I assumed she'd figure it out. She's actually pretty smart for a lawyer." House watched as Cuddy stifled a yawn. "How about you go home and get some rest, you definitely look like you could use it. I'll hang out here with her for a while." He vowed.

Cuddy stopped herself from immediately refusing his offer, taking a moment to look House in the eye and see the compassion and worry hidden within the vibrant blue. Stacy's words from earlier in the day played in her mind blurring the lines of what she knew to be true.

"Okay" she agreed the pull of fatigue was too strong to fight off any longer. She gathered her purse and briefcase and leaned over the still form on the bed to deliver a kiss to her daughter's brow. "Keep fighting little one." Her throaty voice whispered in the girl's ear.

She made her way over to House and paused in front of him; he glanced up at her expectantly but was bowled over when she leaned down and placed a tender kiss on his lips. Moving back, she gauged his surprise before sliding in for another sweet touch. "Thank you" she whispered in much the same octave she used with Jordan "for dinner and for being here."

"This is where I wanted to be." He told her simply.

"Goodnight." She said as she left the hospital room.

"You better wake up soon junior; I could use a little help figuring out your Mom." House reached out for Jordan's prone hand on the bed and squeezed it gently.

_TBC_

Please R&R if you get the chance.


	12. Chapter 12

See first post for disclaimer.

**AN:** Thanks once more for all the response. You guys are great. The House fandom is one of the most supportive and kind ones out there! And incase anyone's wondering, I didn't spell centimeters incorrectly….that's how you pronounce it in Labour and Delivery…..one of the things I picked up from my stint in the department. (okay, likely the only thing I pick up lol)

**Chapter 12**

"Where's House?" Cameron asked Chase and Foreman who were sitting with her at the glass table in the break room.

"How many times a day do we ask that? Where's House?" Foreman scowled. "Who cares where he is. He's been slacking on this case – more than usual – and if he doesn't at least badger us into making a diagnosis I'm gonna have Cuddy deal with him." Foreman sighed into his coffee mug.

"That's probably not a good idea. House doesn't take kindly to tattlers" Chase said. His own experience with such matters left him well versed.

"We shouldn't be bothering Cuddy anyway. She's got enough to deal with, without having to keep House on a leash." Cameron commented.

"Keeping House on a leash is what Cuddy does…or tries to do." Chase pointed out.

"She's got more on her plate right now. We can deal with House for a few weeks without bothering her." She stated firmly.

"What's this? Some kind of code of sisterhood or are you just trying to protect your ass. It would help to have Cuddy in your corner when you meet with the review board." Foreman smirked.

"Probably, but my hearing aside – she should be spending time with her daughter; not chasing House down." She reiterated.

"Oh my ears are burning." House raised his eyebrows as he hobbled into the room.

"Nice of you to show up." Forman nodded his head at his boss.

"Unlike you slackers I was here until the middle of the night yesterday." House hooked his cane over the white board and limped to the coffee machine.

"You worked late last night?" Chase uttered in disbelief.

"No, I said I stayed late. I don't remember a whole lot of work being done. Although I did set a new personal best for chucking cotton balls into their container." A sly grin lit his lips.

"Nice." Chase rolled his eyes.

"Lung biopsy!" he yelled, causing all three doctors to jump. "Who has the results?" House readjusted the volume of his voice to a more tolerable level once he had his staff's attention.

"Negative for cancer, bacterial pneumonia and common fungi." Chase sighed with defeat.

"What about uncommon fungi? If there was anything common about this woman's diagnosis some idiot with a mail order medical degree down in the ER would have cured her and sent her home. You're supposed to be GOOD doctors – you can't rely on my genius to figure it out ever time!"

"Do you even have a differential?" Foreman fumed with annoyance.

"I'll give you a hint; I'm not a bacteria or fungus. I have my own DNA and when you feed me steroids I-"

"Parasite!" Chase shouted and smiled when House nodded.

"Oh gees, now you're giddy." House rolled his eyes and made a face at the younger man. "Don't get so excited, I practically drew you a diagram."

"We'll start her on an anti-parasitic." Foreman stood up and exited the room with his two colleagues.

The three young doctors passed Stacy as they left and Chase dutifully held the door for her. House limped into his office as quickly as he could, doing his best to avoid the hospital attorney.

"You suck at hiding House." Stacy called after his retreating form.

"I'm not trying to hide – I've got work to do." He quickly veered away from the door he was planning on escaping through in favor of sitting at his desk to prove his point.

"If you're going to lie, at least try and make it believable." She shook her head and dropped into the chair across from him.

"Don't you have another cripple to annoy – like say your husband?" House leaned forward to pick up his tennis ball but Stacy grabbed it first.

"Oh real mature." He snapped.

"I figured it you can't beat it out of 'em, join 'em." She passed the ball between her hands, keenly watching the lines twirl at each pass.

"I don't think that's how the saying goes." He watched her closely, "You can stop fondling my ball. I'm not going to sleep with you." The mocking sigh he attached at the end earned a glare from Stacy.

"Oh shut up." She threw the ball at his head but he caught it.

"You need to write a letter to the medical review board on behalf of Dr. Cameron." She pursed her lips as he immediately began bouncing the ball blindly on the floor by his left foot.

"The review board needs a letter for the deposition as well as me sitting in front of them?" He scowled.

"It would be in your best interests and Dr. Cameron's if you didn't attend the hearing." Stacy gave him a pointed look.

"This is about my biological relation to the patient."

Stacy rolled her eyes and frowned, "Yes, this is about your _biological relation to the patient_."

"Why does it matter? I didn't know she was my daughter when she came into the clinic and Cameron still doesn't."

"And yet it remains a conflict of interest and if you're in that deposition and they ask you about Cameron's conduct from the point of view of Jordan's father, you'll either have to lie or incriminate Cameron….write the damn letter and don't discuss the matter with Cameron." Stacy stated firmly.

House regarded her with a rare look of sincerity and nodded his agreement.

"Now, have you talked to Lisa about this?" Stacy folded her hands in her lap.

"You need to know this for legal purposes or are you just looking for some good gossip?" His eyes widened and he pitched back in his chair.

"I'm asking as your friend." She responded.

"Oh friend – are we doing that now?" He drawled smugly.

"Whatever" Stacy shook her head. "I'm surprised at how….reserved you're being about it all."

"Were you expecting a tantrum? I know you'd like to believe otherwise but I can be mature." He glared at her.

"Even I wouldn't begrudge you a good outburst over this" Stacy smirked. "How are you taking the news?" House heard the genuine concern in her tone and was caught between responding to it and scoffing at it.

Surprising he chose the former. "It's not such a big deal" he shrugged. "She's going to be twenty soon, she's an adult and can take care of herself."

"Yeah but when she wakes up, she could have expectations of you."

"When she wakes up she's going to face more harsh realities than a newly discovered father." The truth was she may never awaken.

There was a pregnant pause before Stacy rose and inclined her head. "Don't forget to write that letter." She reminded him as she left the office.

House toyed with the Jordan's medical file sitting on top of his desk. After a moment's contemplation he swung his cane down and levered himself out of the chair and headed for the elevators.

OOxxxxOO

Outside the hospital clinic the sun was held hostage by a barrage of clouds, casting an ominous grey hue in the sky. A storm was on the brink of siege against the small New Jersey city; the wind picked up, ferociously stirring branches and fallen leaves and blowing two weary travelers in through the mechanical glass doors.

The elderly pair who stepped into the patient filled clinic were immaculate in dress but their frowns told of a worry designer labels and perfect posture could not cloak. Together, they rounded the admitting desk and entered the outer office of the Dean of Medicine only to be halted by a young man with enthusiasm for his job.

"Dr. Cuddy is busy. I'm afraid you'll have to make an appointment before you can see her." He shot them an apologetic frown then wilted slightly under the piercing gaze of the man.

"Aren't you just adorable. Is Lisa babysitting you while your mother is in with the doctors?" Catherine Cuddy raised a suggestive eyebrow at the twenty-something man and he promptly dropped back into his seat.

"Now, now Catherine. The young man is only doing his job." Asher warned his wife; though it was obvious he found her comment humorous. "I'm sure you have plenty of work to do so we'll go on in and let you get back to it." His deep voice soothed the concern of the assistant and the couple was through the door to Cuddy's main office before the young man could think to protest further.

"Lisa!" Cuddy jumped at the sound of her mother's voice. "Where is my grandbaby?"

"Mom." Cuddy sighed once her heart began beating a normal rhythm once more. "She's upstairs."

"Lisa this isn't a house. You've got 6 floors five wings and countless rooms, unless you expect me to search them all-"

Asher interrupted his wife as a favor to his daughter. "Hello Sweetheart." He walked around the desk and drew her into a hug once she stood. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay Dad. Just worried." And anxious, sad, guilty, regretful, nauseasated and a number of other distasteful emotions but that was left unsaid. "I'm glad you could make it." She pulled away from her father and smile at her mother. "She's on the forth floor Mom. I'll take you there." Cuddy hit a few buttons on her phone to send calls directly to voice mail and escorted her parents out of the office.

"I don't know why you didn't say that in the first place." Her mother huffed, unbuttoning her Burberry overcoat. "Your father had us park on the other side of the lot because he didn't want to take the time to look for a spot closer to the building. We likely wasted the time we would have spent looking for a closer spot with the walk we had. We should have hired a car service and saved ourselves the time to park."

Cuddy and her father shared a look at Catherine's ramblings but said nothing.

"Has there been any change since you called us?" Her father laid a hand on the back of her shoulder in silent support of his only daughter.

"No." She shook her head, her dark hair loosening from the clip that was holding it back. "She's still unconscious." She saw both her parent's frowns deepened and hastened to reassure them. "With an injury like Jordan's that's to be expected. It would be extremely unlikely that she'd awaken only a few days after surgery."

The elevator doors dinged and opened to reveal the forth floor. Cuddy was surprised to find she was more nervous on this journey to her daughter's room than the last; she supposed it was due to the people that flanked her sides. It was the first time they would see their granddaughter lying in her hospital bed and it was utterly cruel for her to have to be the one to present that image to her parents; yet, as both mother and Dean it was expected.

"Here is it." Cuddy nodded to the nurses at their station and slid the half closed door open all the way to let her parents into the room.

Catherine and Asher said nothing. The sound of both their hearts breaking was enough noise to fill the room. They were the only two people in the hospital who could truly understand what a horrific image it was to see such a vibrant spirit lying still and laboring quietly to rid her body of its ailments.

It was an injustice. An injustice that the room looked so similar to the one Jordan had arrived into almost twenty years before. But then most often a laymen wouldn't be able to tell the difference from one hospital room to the next. They were all the same – and yet each one had four walls that kept secrets of the people who had come and gone.

_**Flashback**_

_Hartford, Connecticut_

"_You're two weeks overdue Lisa. I'd like to go ahead and induce labor before we end up any further post-term." Lisa Cuddy listened as her family doctor outlined his reasons. She really couldn't care less why he wanted to induce labor as long as it meant she would no longer be carrying around twenty extra pounds of baby and fluid._

"_Sounds good." She smiled at the man. _

_Her doctor smirked at her anxious words. "Alright. We'll admit you right away and get you started on a Pitocin drip."_

_Lisa was admitted and placed in a private room. Her father was a very generous donor to their local private hospital and saw fit that his only daughter have the most comfortable accommodations during labor. _

_Two hours later Lisa was in the same situation as when she had arrived at the hospital, with no sign of her water breaking. Catherine Cuddy was furious with the doctors for having them wait around while nothing was happening. She routinely paced the interior of Lisa's room and ranted about the lack of efficiency on the part of the staff. The labor and delivery nurse made an appearance and turned up the drip on Lisa's Pitocin IV in the hopes that it would get the process moving._

"_I don't see why they couldn't have upped the dosage an hour ago." Catherine turned her large diamond ring around her finger._

"_They needed to give the medication time to work Mom." Lisa explained. "There are some risks involved when inducing so they have to air on the side of caution."_

"_All of you kids were delivered on the exact date you were due." Catherine told her daughter. "I don't know why your baby is so late."_

"_She gets her timing from her father." Lisa snorted._

"_Speaking of which…." Catherine eyed her daughter._

"_No I haven't called him or written him and I'm not going to. We left things on good terms; we weren't going to pretend we could have a long distance relationship. There isn't anything he can do to help with the baby from Maryland so there's no point in telling him just so he can feel guilty." Lisa sighed, having had this conversation before._

"_He has a right to know Darling." Catherine's brow furrowed with sadness._

"_I know he does. But I had to weight that against the problems it would cause in his life if he did know. I'll tell him eventually Mom. Maybe when he's done medical school." Lisa reasoned._

"_You are a wonder to me Darling. Here you are, about to embark on something you've never done and you manage to be calm and rational about it all." Catherine smiled._

"_I'm terrified." Lisa stated with wide eyes. "I have no idea what I'm doing or what I'm going to do once she's here. But there isn't a whole lot I can do about it now; it's not like I can persuade her to hang out in my uterus for the next ten years." Lisa intoned dryly._

_Catherine stroked her daughter's dark curls back from her face. "Why is it that you think you're having a girl?" _

_Lisa smiled knowingly. "It's just a feeling I-" her eyes widened. "Shit" she cursed._

"_Lisa!" Her mother scolded._

"_My water just broke." She explained, and then grimaced as a powerful contraction overcame her. She had been having mild contractions all morning but that one jack hammered through her lowered abdomen and sent shock waves of fire down her back and legs._

"_I'll go tell the nurse." Catherine was up and out of the room in a flash._

_Ten minutes later Lisa was in a fresh hospital gown and on a new gurney. She was dilating nicely and the doctor told her to expect to deliver in the next five hours or so. But twenty minutes after that foreshadowed statement Lisa felt the sudden urge to push._

"_Mom, get the doctor." She said around gritted teeth. She was getting used to the powerful cramping that ebbed and flowed but she was nowhere near comfortable._

"_Is there something wrong?" Catherine worried._

"_I think the baby's coming now. I feel like I need to push." She told her._

"_Hold on Sweetheart." She told Lisa and once more disappeared out into the hallway._

"_Your mother says you feel like you need to push but that's likely just the prolonged pressure of the contractions." The nurse smiled gentle and lifted the sheet over Lisa's legs to check how dilated she was. With wide eyes the nurse stood and moved out of the room and returned a moment later. "I've paged the doctor. You're at ten contimetres."_

"_That's what I've been trying to tell you. Next time I'll remember to bring a ruler so I can demonstrate the stretching of my vagina for all of you." Lisa rolled her eyes as another contraction ripped through her._

"_Try not to push. The doctor will be here any minute." The nurse patted her knee._

"_Lisa." The doctor announced his arrival. "So you're an overachiever at labor too." He smiled as he sat at the end of the bed and checked her progression. "Well, looks like we're not going to have time to get up into the delivery room." He smirked and turned to the nurse. "I'm going to need a fully stocked delivery cart right away and get the delivery nurses in here; I could use the extra hands." He told her. "They caught me just as I was going out to get something to eat" he shared with the women remaining in the room. "I likely wouldn't have made it back for show time I had gotten out the door." He chuckled._

"_Explain to me what is funny about the idea that you almost missed my grandchild's birth?" Catherine glared at the doctor._

"_I have to push." Lisa interrupted her mother's dressing down of the doctor._

"_Alright Lisa. Let's count to ten and push." The doctor told her and began counting as Lisa sat up and bore down._

_Catherine moved to hold her daughter's hand and support her back while she pushed but it was no easy feet for Lisa. The mattress was too soft and she had nothing to brace her legs against; this was obviously the reason one didn't give birth in the labor room. A few pushes later and the doctor announced he could see the head. With the birth moving so rapidly there was no time for an episiotomy, leaving a small tear for the doctor to have to stitch up later._

"_Lisa, let's try to get the head out on the next contraction." He encouraged though Lisa glowered at his use of the word 'let's'. The guy wasn't doing anything but staring at the top of her baby's head and he had the gall to include himself. At that pivotal moment she decided that she would not become an OB/GYN._

_The rest of the staff arrive a moment later with the scale, extra blankets and suction. Lisa heard the doctor muttering something about perfect timing before the contraction cause the sound of the other voices to be drowned out by the thudding of her pulse in her own ears. The doctor was talking again but the only thought that stuck out in Lisa's mind was that if she didn't have her baby's head currently between her legs she would kick the moron doctor in his ever moving mouth._

_Two pushes later she felt the shoulders pass through, the pressure disappeared and a sound that faintly resembled a cat meowing reached her._

"_Did you hear that Lisa? You were right, it's a girl." She heard her mother say and then hugged her tight._

"_Of course I was right." Lisa replied breathlessly. _

_By the time she had finished delivering the afterbirth the baby had been cleaned, weighed, measured, and swaddled. With her mother's help, Lisa was propped up on the bed and the baby girl was placed into her waiting arms. The first feature that stood out was the full lips that were puckered in annoyance and the one-eyed glare that just barely let Lisa see the blue eyes hiding behind tiny eyelids. Light brown wisps of hair covered her cone shaped head and wrinkled fingers were left outside of the blanket and balled into fists._

"_I just gave birth to you." Lisa spoke softly to the child in wonder._

"_And you did it in 55 minutes. That may be a hospital record." The moron doctor smirked._

"_You did amazing Darling." Catherine looked on from the edge of the bed. "Your father is going to get quite a surprise when he gets out of his meeting."_

"_She's beautiful isn't she Mom." Lisa continued to speak as though thoroughly shocked._

"_She's breathtaking." Catherine felt tears welling in her eyes but decided to let them fall when she saw her daughter's own tears trace over her cheek. "What are you going to name her?"_

_Lisa was silent a beat, assessing the tiny body nestled in her arms. "Jordan." She finally responded. _

"_You don't want to give her a Jewish name?" Her mother questioned. "Maybe Abigail or Miriam or maybe Tova, Tova's a beautiful name" she coaxed. Lisa smirked at hearing her mother promoting the Jewish heritage, considering it was her father who was the only Jewish one out of her parents. _

"_No Mom. Her name's Jordan. Maybe I'll make Tova her middle name if it means so much to you." She peered up at her mother from beneath her lashes._

"_What means a lot to me is being here." Catherine lost her hand in Lisa's curls and watched her daughter watching her own._

_**End Flashback**_

"This doesn't feel real." Catherine whispered. "I don't feel as though I'm actually looking at my granddaughter."

"How is she really doing Lisa?" Her father asked compassionately.

"Bad." Cuddy felt her throat constricting with the sting of suppressed sobs. "I wish…." A noise at the door stymied her words and she glanced up.

House stood rigid, eyeing the familiar faces in his newly established daughter's hospital room. "They're all so well dressed for a firing squad." He muttered under his breath with carefully concealed surprise. He knew he should have slept in until noon….

_**TBC**_

A 55minute labour isn't as bizarre as it sounds – I was only 40minutes myself and there were more than a few women who were in the midst of pushing as they were transferred to the D. room…they are the women no one ever talks about cause everyone would want to strangle them lol. Please R&R if you get the chance.


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